Mountains to Dust
by Sketcher1994
Summary: The new servant had to be a barbarian. Tall, dark hair, fierce dragon-like red eyes and cared more about cleaning the courtyard than learning our language. Perhaps this man would be able to tell her tales of adventure that rivalled those of her books? She already knew many languages, she just needed to know which one he spoke...and it would help if it was one that she knew.
1. Chapter 1

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima! XD**

**Just a little surprise update for you! Hope you enjoy this! My wonderful friend Kaiisan helped me with the summary! XD**

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Levy sat quietly on her sofa, her book open as a warm breeze drifted in through the open window. It was a particularly hot day, and she was using that fact as an excuse to read her book, for what else should she do while she lazed in the shade? She'd been reading all morning, much to her aunt's annoyance, but there was little else she wished to do. She could go get some wool to spin for making new clothes, like her aunt had suggested, but her book was more interesting. Her books were usually more interesting than her life, really.

She had lost her father at a young age and her mother had passed away only six years ago, leaving her with her aunt and uncle and their family. She could not really remember her father, but he had been a soldier in the army. He had been part of the cavalry regiment of some General, but she could not remember which. Her aunt never spoke of her brother, so it was more than a little difficult to find out anything about her father. As for her mother, her death had not been particularly easy for Levy.

It had started not long after Levy's eighth birthday. Her mother had began complaining of mild headaches, but she had been determined that they would pass, trying not to be a burden to her sister-in-law's family. However, they slowly became worse, leaving her mother barely able to stand at times, but that was when the abdominal pains began. She had noticed her mother beginning to look pale, but as an eight year old girl, she had not quite realised what was happening. Now, however, she realised that her concern for her mother had been well placed. A doctor had been approached as she began to develop a noticeable fever, having apparently waved it off as due the summer heat for some weeks, however, by then it was too late.

"Levy?"

Levy glanced up from her book, gesturing to her aunt to enter her room, a smile now in place.

"I have just had a letter from your uncle, and he wishes to press the matter once more." She began, Levy fighting the building dread. "You have already turned down two potential husbands, and he wishes that you would find one as soon as was reasonable. We do have three daughters of our own that shall need husbands soon, but that only makes our concern for you greater."

"I shall agree to marry when I find a man who will love me." Levy replied, turning back to her book.

"And how shall you find one if your nose is always in a book? Who would want a wife that does nothing but read?" Her aunt returned, taking the book from her hands. "You rarely help in the kitchen and you only help spin the wool when you have no choice but to replace your clothes! You do not even show any interest in how to manage servants!"

"You only have one servant, Aunt – what is there to know about managing one servant?!" Levy huffed, reaching her short arms out for the book.

"As of last week, we have two." Her aunt nodded, moving the book further out of Levy's reach. "You would know that if you actually paid attention instead of letting your head float around the clouds."

"Oh, and what does the new servant do? The other girl helps you cook and clean, so what does this new girl do for you? Is she here to help the first?" Levy sighed, folding her arms in front of her small chest.

"The new one is a man and he helps with the animals." Her aunt explained, a superior note to her voice.

"Oh, so we have a man servant that helps with the animals? I will bear that in mind for if I ever decide to help slaughter one. I do not want to suddenly find some strange man behind me with a knife." Levy replied with sarcasm.

"Well learning to work with the animals would be a better use of your time than reading these books." Her aunt snapped, turning to leave the room. "And he has another use too."

"What would that be, Aunt?" Levy asked, annoyed that her book was being taken away.

"He is to escort you whenever you leave the house, instead of your cousin – your cousin has not the time to take you out on a whim anymore, so you will have to play nice with the young man." Her aunt smiled, the irritation clear in her eyes.

Levy smiled sweetly back as her aunt left the room, sighing as she closed the door behind her. They got along wonderfully until the subjects of husbands or books were brought up. She was only fourteen, and the girls in her books were still out on adventures at her age. Obviously so were the boys, but she was not ready to marry and all she really wanted was to curl up next to her mother again, listening to her soothing voice as she read. Her aunt had never quite approved of Levy's love of books, but only acted on her disapproval if Levy's book was not teaching her something new. Levy loved learning, so that was not a problem, but every so often, she liked to just lay down and read the books that her mother had spent so many hours devoted to reading to her.

She sat up as she heard a knock on the door, expecting one of her younger cousins to enter. After a few moments of silently waiting, she called to the person to come in, deciding that perhaps it was her elder cousin. He had a habit of not just walking into rooms, unlike his younger sisters – as shy as the youngest was. The middle daughter was cute and very lively, but the youngest was shy and sweet. The eldest, of course, was her best friend though. She had been there for Levy while she had grieved over her mother, and if she remembered correctly, had even been there for her after she had heard of her father's death. They had been close for as long as she could remember.

"Good afternoon, Gray." Levy smiled, beckoning her eldest cousin into the room.

Her cousin was fairly tall and considered very handsome, even at the young age of sixteen. He had a head of medium length, straight midnight blue hair that tufted out a little around the sides, and dark shielded eyes that were always friendly to the people he trusted, except for his best friend. He was always fighting with his best friend, but neither of them would ever admit to even being friends. Really, the two were probably closer to brothers than friends.

"Afternoon, Levy." He smiled back, walking up to her and offering her his hand to help her up. "Mother has sent me to introduce you to the new servant. She was telling me that you had no idea that we _had_ a new servant."

"Well, I have been reading since the hot weather started – I am prone to burning." She replied, taking his hand as he pulled her up.

"And that is the only reason." He smirked back, knowing she had really just been enjoying her books. "Now, just a warning, this new servant is a little rough around the edges – Father brought him back from another country."

"So he is a foreigner?" She asked, only mildly surprised as she followed Gray out of her room.

"Yeah, and he does not talk much – I do not know if that is a language barrier or he just does not want to talk." Gray explained, leading her down the corridor towards the front door.

"Where did Uncle bring him from?" Levy inquired, stepping out into the unusually clean cobbled courtyard. "And what happened to the courtyard?!"

"The new servant." Gray smirked, pushing her in front of him in the direction of the stables.

"Wha- Oh my god..." She gasped, her eyes falling on the giant man as he stepped out of the stables, his attention clearly caught by their sudden appearance.

He stood at almost six foot tall, a whole half a head taller than her cousin. His skin was the colour of the dirt track that led to their fields. His eyes were the shape of a lizard's and the colour of the brightest, perfectly cut ruby, black slit-like pupils cutting through their centre. The sharp ridges that formed his eyebrows and nose held strange silver-coloured metal spheres, three on each, his bottom lip holding two similar silver spheres. His hair was the darkness of shadows on a moonless night after the fire of the oil lamps had been extinguished. It fell from the top of his forehead, slicked back bar a few longish strands that had fallen forward over is hardened features, to his tailbone in a matted-looking mass.

"Ah, this is the new servant, which I am sure you have realised." Gray began, silently laughing at her while she gaped up at the giant man.

"H-He-Hello..." She stuttered, gulping as she stared up into his peculiar eyes.

The servant nodded and pushed back the strands of black hair that had fallen forward, causing more metal to catch her eyes. He wore five more pieces of metal in his ears, along with the metal around his wrists. A servant. His metal cuffs were currently free of each other, but still clung tightly to his wrists, a strong reminder of his position in their society. Levy knew without looking that there would be those same cold, dull metal cuffs around his ankles. How had her uncle come across this man? How had he even _captured_ him?

Not only was he at least as tall as her uncle, this man clearly had very muscular arms in comparison to the men she had seen before. This man had been made to work through his life, his tanned skin further evidence. Perhaps he came from a savage country, one where one had to fight to survive? Where one had to live outdoors in all weathers? Perhaps one had to be strong just to survive, unlike their country? They lived in a country of scholars, and the military for those stronger born. This man would easily look in perfect place in the military, except for his other rather startling features. Perhaps this man had come of his own free will?

"What-What is your name?" She asked cautiously, earning a mild look of surprise from the giant – clearly he had not been asked by many.

"Gajeel." He replied, his voice rough as if he were chewing upon gravel, either from lack of use or perhaps that was just the way he sounded?

"Gajeel." She repeated, trying to get the sounds right, earning another stern nod from him. "Gajeel, where are you from?"

He stared at her, his face completely emotionless. Had she said something wrong? Had he even understood her? Her cousin had informed her that he did not say much, so perhaps it _was_ a language barrier? She glanced up at her cousin, apparently signalling to the servant that he could leave as he turned back to the stables. She quickly turned back to him and followed him to the door, standing on her toes to peep over the top of the door as he shut it between them.

She heard Gray laugh quietly behind her and turned to glare at him, making him laugh a little harder. This should not be so amusing to him. She was just curious, and she could not help her short stature. This new servant had apparently cleaned their courtyard to the point of it being spotless, looked like a barbarian, and seemingly spoke next to no Fiorian. Of course she was going to show some interest in him, and she was not going to let her height, or lack of, get in the way. Perhaps this man would be able to tell her tales of adventure that rivalled those of her books? Perhaps he could teach her something new? She already knew many languages, she just needed to know which one he spoke...and of course, it would help if it was indeed one that she already knew.

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**Hope you enjoyed this! ^_^ Obviously there will be another chapter at some point, but I am still technically on hiatus :P Please let me know what you think! *bites lip nervously* Hope you're all keeping well!? ^_^**


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima**

**Ok, so, thank you so much! I have never had such an amazing response to a first chapter before! I've had reviews in the past saying that a bit starts going too fast, so I have tried to keep this 'slow and steady' :) Hopefully you will enjoy this, I'm actually really proud of it, and I won't be boring you with long ANs for this in future. Thank you again! Hope you enjoy the rest of the story as I update! ^_^**

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**Chapter Two**

Levy placed herself at the dining table, sitting opposite her youngest cousin, her best friend to her right and Gray to her left. Her aunt sat at the bottom of the table, the empty chair at the top reserved for her absent uncle. In another week he would return, finally, from his current campaign. She knew they were currently fighting along the border to gain more land from Bosco, but as far as she was concerned, the fighting was completely unnecessary. They had no need of more land, but their ruler apparently thought otherwise. Why were men with power so filled with greed?

"I took Levy out to meet the new servant." Gray's voice cut through her thoughts.

Levy sat up, suddenly remembering where she was, taking her eyes away from the empty chair to look between her cousin and her aunt. He must have realised she had disappeared into her own head once more. She had been doing that for most of the afternoon, and now, apparently, she was letting her soup go cold. She smiled her thanks to her cousin, lifting the spoon to ladle some soup, her attention drifting into its clear depths as she absently listened to her aunt ask him questions. She sighed, remembering that it had been some childish campaign that no-one would talk about that had forced her to sit at this table. She glanced up at her uncle's chair again, sipping the soup on her spoon.

"Levy, are you feeling alright? You seem a little more distracted than usual?" Gray's eldest sister asked quietly, trying not to gain too much attention from her mother.

"I was just thinking about your father, Lucy." Levy smiled back, turning her attention onto her cousin.

Her cousin was tall and beautiful, the kind of girl that could choose either a man of the military or a scholar. She had smooth blonde hair that lay across her shoulder blades like dyed silk, and large brown eyes that shone bright with her emotions, greeting everyone with boundless pools of kindness, echoed by her sweet smile. If a man wanted more to a woman than eyes and a sweet smile, her cousin certainly had more to offer. Both her chest and intelligence were impressive, as well as her ability to run a home. She was only three months younger than Levy, and Levy was sure that her cousin was glad that that made finding her a husband the greater priority, for both Levy and Gray were sure as to who Lucy wished to marry, even if she would not confess.

"He will be back soon, so you really do not need to worry." Lucy replied, a sweet smile hiding her obvious worry concerning her father – no-one could be certain who would in fact return.

"Father is strong, or he would not have managed to send us back that new servant." Gray reassured proudly, grinning at the two of them.

"Where did he find him?" Levy asked, hoping to gain some more information on the silent giant.

"Somewhere along the border, but he was not more specific than that." Gray replied, watching as his youngest sister began to gather the empty bowls while the middle disappeared off to the kitchen.

"Is he Boscan?" Levy inquired, handing the youngest of the family her bowl with a smile.

"If he is, he does not respond to Boscan out of insolence." Gray snorted, clearly annoyed at the idea of the giant ignoring him. "He does seem to understand very basic Fiorian though – he did tell you his name when you asked, and he clearly understood enough of what Mother ordered him to do. Father will be happy when he sees the courtyard."

"That certainly caught me by surprise." Levy laughed, watching as the two girls began laying plates down in front of them. "Goat? I thought we were out of prepared meats?"

"We were – I had the new servant carve up one of the goats for dinner. He cut a leg off for me and began working on the rest of it." Her aunt replied, clearly pleased with herself. "He understood the basic idea of I wanted a goat killed so we could eat it, and I believe he is still butchering the carcass in the kitchen as we speak. There is a strange air of elegance to his work – I was watching him while I prepared this, and he clearly wishes to not waste a single bit of the goat."

"Impressive, but we never use _all_ of the goat, so what exactly does he plan to do with the parts that we do not eat?" Gray replied, watching the kitchen door as he stabbed a piece of goat with his fork.

"I told him he could take what he wants that is not meat or bone." His mother explained, still sounding pleased with herself.

"He is used to not wasting anything, so perhaps he is from a country where resources are sparse?" Levy suggested, happily popping a piece of tender goat into her mouth as she tried to imagine what sort of strange land such a strange man could possibly come from.

"Makes sense." Gray hummed, turning his attention to his plate rather than the man on the other side of the wall. "He chose a good one to slaughter."

"It was my goat." Came a quiet female voice from across the table.

Levy watched as her youngest cousin lifted her head up to meet Gray's eyes, her sweet large brown eyes threatening to water from under her navy blue fringe. It had to have been adorable little Wendy's goat, had not it? She was so sweet and innocent, with her two long bunches reaching from the top of her head to her bottom with no effort at all. Her shy little cousin was but nine years old and doted on the goats, even claiming one as her own. No-one could possibly ever wish to upset such a cute, friendly little girl, but the barbarian had done it without thinking. He had to have not known?

"Wendy, I really am sorry! At least he is taking good care of your goat, as Mother said – nothing is going to waste. He is clearly showing your goat the greatest respect! No other goat has gotten such treatment!" Lucy exclaimed, hoping to cheer Wendy up, earning a small smile and a curt nod from her sister.

"Yes, and you obviously took very good care of it." Gray smiled as he finished emptying his plate, clearly trying to help, but only earning a sniff from Wendy and a glare from Lucy.

"You do take such good care of the goats, Wendy." Levy added, trying to undo some of the damage caused by her eldest cousin. "Are you enjoying having someone to help you?"

"He is really quiet and scary, but I do not think he means to be." Wendy replied shyly, glancing towards the kitchen.

"I am sure he does not." Levy smiled, earning a happy grin from the little girl as she began to eat her vegetables, still a little wary of the goat.

They sat silently as they waited on her to finish, none of them wishing to upset her again by hurrying her. It almost felt cruel to be forcing her to eat her own goat, never mind eat it with the five of them watching her, but they could not leave until she finished. Levy smiled reassuringly as Wendy gently pushed her fork into the meat, earning a small nervous smile in return. She felt Lucy squeeze her knee and turned to look at her, having her cousin nod in the direction of the kitchen. She glanced over to the empty doorway, finding nothing amiss before smiling questioningly back at her blonde cousin.

"Right, as we have now all finished, you are dismissed." Her aunt suddenly announced loudly, standing up from the table, turning her attention to Levy and Lucy. "Make sure to return to your own rooms before I come to check on you."

Levy nodded, her cheeks warming slightly as she remembered being caught in Lucy's room the night before. She had received quite the lecture from her aunt, telling her that sleep was important to both of them, and they should not be up so late reading books. Unfortunately for Levy and Lucy, the book had not been informing, rather more along the lines of a prince coming to rescue a princess from a dragon. They could probably recite the story word for word, but they did enjoy reading the book, even if it was now confiscated like the book from earlier. Levy would definitely find out where her books were being kept.

"Are you coming?" Lucy asked, breaking her train of thought.

Levy nodded and stood up from the dining table, her cousin taking her hand as she began to drag her towards the corridor that led to their bedrooms. The girls' rooms were in one wing of the house, while Gray's was in the other, along with the spare rooms for male guests. Her aunt and uncle's room was situated directly above the dining room. From the dining room, there were four doors; one to the kitchen, another out into the courtyard, and two others, each with a set of gray stone steps leading to the separate wings, while her aunt and uncle could reach their room from a door at the top of either set.

The steps led to a corridor that ran the length of the entire wing along the inside of the outside wall of the building, narrow windows letting in light and fresh air on one side, as well as glimpses of their fields. All the rooms looked down into the large rectangle courtyard which was lined with stables under the men's rooms and storage under the girls', while closed in on the fourth side by a thick stone wall that had a single metal gate just wide enough for a carriage and arched tall enough for a single mounted person. The dirt road on the other side led through their fields, with dirt tracks branching off to further out fields, and over the top of the hill towards the town.

"Did you see him?" Lucy began, shutting Levy's door behind them quietly.

"Who? Gray introduced me to the new servant earlier, if that is what you are asking." Levy replied, turning to look at her cousin in confusion.

"He was watching us from the kitchen while we were waiting on Wendy finishing her dinner." Lucy explained, running her fingertips along a shelf of Levy's bookcase. "I wonder if we seem strange to him?"

"We more than likely do." Levy sighed, falling onto her sofa.

They both stilled, listening to the light footsteps approaching them cautiously along the corridor. Levy slowly turned to look at Lucy, seeing her panic reflected in her cousin's wide eyes. Her aunt was about to catch them. Surely she was early? How was this fair? They had only had a few minutes since dinner, and it was barely dark outside! Levy silently gestured to Lucy to join her on the sofa, sighing with relief as her cousin crept towards her without a book. The last thing she needed was for more of her books to be taken away.

They listened in silence as the footsteps stopped outside Levy's bedroom door. They turned to look at each other, ready to pretend to be discussing politics the second that her aunt opened the door. Levy held her breath as she watched the handle turn, trying to calm herself. The door opened nervously, a head of long black hair falling in through her door, a set of unsure red eyes meeting hers, the giant barbarian leaning into her room.

"H-Hello?" She stammered, her nerves taking hold as the giant stood in her bedroom doorway.

He grunted at her, nodding his head as he rubbed his neck awkwardly, glancing down at his feet.

"Ca-Can I help you?" Levy forced out, Lucy staring wide-eyed at her, not daring to look behind her.

He grunted again and pointed behind her at the open window. Levy looked towards the window, wondering what he could be wanting. She stood up, glancing back over her shoulder nervously as she approached the window. If he wanted to kill them, this would be a perfect opportunity. He could do anything he wanted to them, and he could likely escape before her uncle returned. She looked out of the window, silently admiring his clean courtyard before laughing quietly to herself.

"You are lost." She smiled, turning back to the mildly awkward looking giant as he stood seriously in her doorway. "You are looking for the courtyard." She laughed, gesturing down to the courtyard below them.

Her smile grew as she watched a pleased smirk appear on his lips, suddenly losing all his awkwardness. Levy began to walk towards him, watching as his lizard-like eyes narrowed, the black slits that cut through the burning red following her every movement. She smiled sweetly up at him, trying to reassure him, unaware of her cousin's movements behind her. She heard the bell before she even had any idea what was going on, the sound gaining the servant's full attention, clearly now waiting on some sort of order. Little did he know that the bell meant trouble for him.


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

**Thank you for your reviews, follows and favourites! ^_^ So, '****_Guest'_****, I'm going to half oblige you! ^_^ I'm going to post two chapters at once tonight! Sorry in advance for any typos, it's 12:30am :P **(If you spot any, please let me know so that I can correct them ASAP! Might see about getting a BETA for this - anyone interested?)

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**Chapter Three**

Within less than a minute, the servant girl was standing in her bedroom doorway alongside the giant. Levy stood gaping as her cousin called to the girl to fetch her mother, her eyes not leaving the confusion reflected back at her from his. She blinked as the girl disappeared, regaining her senses as she spun to look at her cousin, ready to shout at her for ringing the bell. What would her aunt do? The giant male servant certainly should not be in her room, but he was lost and had tried to ask how to get back to the courtyard. He should not be punished for being abandoned in the kitchen.

He would have been forced to walk around the outside with the goat, so how should he know where to go to get back? If he had tried to leave by the back door, he would have found himself out in the fields, where he would have had tried to enter the courtyard by the front gate. The gate would have been locked when he reached it though, so he would have had to turn back. What if he had walked into the dining room and realised there were three other doors for him to choose from, but no-one to ask? It was likely that he had chosen the first door and walked the length of the corridor, choosing her door to open because it was the last, or perhaps he had opened each in turn? It was perfectly possible, and if her cousins' were in their bathroom, they would have been none the wiser.

He should not be punished for such an unfortunate misunderstanding.

"Lucy! He is lost! He needs help – not a whipping!" Levy cried out, taking the bell cord from her cousin's hands.

"He will not get a whipping! Gray will come and take him outside, and then we will all be safe! We cannot have a man like him wandering around the house! Lost or not!" Lucy argued, biting her lip as she glanced up at the giant barbarian.

"We could have just told him where to go!" Levy returned, shaking her head as she turned to look up at the giant, unsure as to what his chances of not getting a whipping would be.

"And would he have understood you?" Her aunt asked as he silently stepped back to allow her entry to the room.

"Well, I could have shown him." Levy replied politely, avoiding her aunt's gaze.

"And left yourself unprotected and alone in his company in the dark corridors while everyone slept?" Her aunt returned, challenging her to come up with a suitable defence.

"I am sure he would not have hurt me." Levy stated, lifting her head to make herself seem more confident.

"Even if he did not, how would you return to your room alone in the dark?" Her aunt sighed, a soft smile on her lips as she shook her head. "You are your father's daughter. I will take him back to his quarters, and I shall not give him a whipping. He will not be allowed back in the house until your uncle returns though." Her aunt explained, turning to leave the room as she gestured to the barbarian to follow her. "And Lucy, go to your own room."

"Yes, Mother." Lucy responded, smiling goodnight to Levy as she followed.

Levy sighed and turned towards her window, taking the few steps needed to find herself resting on its ledge. She felt the cool evening air brush across her skin, a welcome change to the warm one that she had suffered through earlier that afternoon. She had not known the barbarian had existed those few hours ago, but now she could not help but wonder at where he had come from. He did not speak Fiorian or Boscan, but he certainly understood some Fiorian, enough to understand most of what she had said to him. If he had truly been found in Bosco, what had he been doing there? The country he came from must border theirs, so why would he risk approaching her uncle's regiment? Why cross into Fiore from Bosco?

She watched as her aunt led the strange, silent man out of the house, shouting something at him. He was probably getting into trouble for wandering around the house. It hardly seemed fair, but he was a servant, and not to mention the only full-grown man in the house. Gray may be of age, but he was not yet a man, even if he was being sent off to the barracks for training once his father returned. Levy would not be surprised if that had been her uncle's motive for capturing this particular man to send to them, for who would wish to leave his wife and daughters unguarded at home?

She turned away from the window as her aunt locked the giant into one of the stables for the night, clearly as his punishment. Levy had no idea where he was supposed to sleep, but the stables seemed unlikely, and she did not even know where the girl slept either. Perhaps she should take her aunt's advice and show more interest in the servants? The girl was Fiorian lower class, bought from her family as a way for her family to feed her younger siblings – what use was a girl to them? They would not manage an advantageous marriage from her, so selling her was apparently the answer.

Levy slipped her dress off, ignoring the urge to look out her window towards the stables as she walked to the side of her bed. She wondered where he was from and what language he spoke, as she lifted her nightgown off of the bed and pulled it over her head. She glanced towards the window as she slid under her covers, her mind more focused on the mysterious man than the need to sleep. She closed her eyes, the image of his first appearance flashing before her as she lay in the dark, his lizard-like, ruby eyes mesmerising her as they watched her from under studded brows. She needed to find out more about this man.

...

Levy yawned, stretching her arms out across her bed. She smiled as the fingertips of her left hand met with soft skin, knowing one of her cousins had come to join her in the night. Rolling onto her side as she opened her eyes, she found little Wendy smiling sheepishly back at her, her two bunches tied up in buns on top of her head to stop them knotting while she slept. Wendy shuffled closer to her, cuddling into her before looking up at her with large, hopeful brown saucers.

"You want me to come outside with you?" Levy offered with a soft smile, earning an embarrassed smile from her young cousin. "Do not worry – you are too kind to hurt his feelings by crying in front of him because of his mistake. Perhaps we could try to explain to him? He would not mean to upset you – Lucy saw him watching us eat dinner, so I believe he already knows that something is wrong."

"But I told him it was my favourite." She whispered, tucking her head under Levy's chin.

"Perhaps in his country, that means that that is the one you wish to eat first?" Levy offered, squeezing the little girl comfortingly. "It was just a cultural difference – we can go explain that to him, and I bet he will feel terrible that he upset you."

Levy heard a little giggle rise up from under her chin and smiled, glad that her little cousin was at least a little happier. She released Wendy and threw back the covers, signalling to the girl that they were getting up. Levy had no idea how she was going to make the giant barbarian understand what she was saying, never mind make him apologise. Hopefully he'd just pick up on the situation and play along, but she would have to be extremely lucky.

Levy pulled herself up to lean against the wooden headboard, her eyes staring blankly at the sky blue veiled canopy that delicately graced the four tall corners of her bed. She closed her eyes as she felt the warm summer breeze drift lazily into her room. The day was going to be the hottest so far of this summer. She would be better just staying inside with her book, enjoying the shade, but her cousin had come seeking her help. She knew why Wendy had not gone to Lucy, or rather, why Wendy had come to her after Lucy telling her it would all be fine and that the servant could not hurt her. Lucy would still be nervous about last night, and Levy, admittedly, was still a little nervous herself, but Wendy did not want to avoid the man. She could not tend her goats if she did.

She swung her legs out of her bed and reached for her chest of drawers, her attention more on the movement in the courtyard than what she was pulling out. She could see movement in one of the stables below Gray's bedroom window in the far corner. Was the servant already working? Of course he was – he would have been from the moment her aunt had unlocked the door, and she would have done that at dawn so that he was not prevented from working for his breakfast. Perhaps he had already had breakfast? Did servants eat before them? It seemed mildly unlikely, but they were up much earlier than them.

She heard a giggle behind her and quickly pulled her nightgown off, replacing it with a pale cream, lightweight dress. She was not sure how much difference there was between the two, but she would rather not find out by approaching a male servant in the first. Even if he was a barbarian from another country, he would likely give some sort of reaction if she appeared in a nightgown. She slipped on her sandals and smiled over her shoulder at the nine year old, offering the girl her hand as she approached her bedroom door.

They walked along the corridor in comfortable silence, Levy watching the fields go past them through the windows over the top of Wendy's head. She was going to have to explain to a strange man that he had hurt a small girl's feelings by slaughtering a goat, something that he clearly thought of as food and a useful resource. Did they have the concept of pets where he came from? Perhaps they did not even live as families? Perhaps he was like a lone predator that hunted his prey through a vast forest, having to use every last scrap from a carcass? Or maybe he came from a desert? To be so tanned, he must see plenty of sunlight.

They made their way down the steps and into the dining room, receiving a smile from Gray as he sat at the table reading the newspaper. They both smiled back, Wendy waving shyly at her older brother, before disappearing out into the courtyard. This was it. She had to manage to get a man who did not speak her language to understand her, to persuade him that he had chosen the wrong goat to slaughter, to make him apologise. She could do it, for the sake of her little cousin, she would have to.

He stepped out of the stable below Gray's bedroom window, watching them carefully from his vantage point with his suspicious, vibrant eyes. He folded his muscular arms across his chest, light glinting off of them. More metal. Above the tight cuffs were four more studs along each forearm, making his powerful arms look even longer. As they moved closer, he seemed increasingly taller and even more muscular. Had he been this vast last night? Perhaps he had just seemed smaller standing in her doorway? He had not seemed this tall when she had spoken to him a day earlier.

A day earlier he had not met her before. A day earlier he had not managed to get lost inside the house. A day earlier he had not been in her room. A day earlier he had not been _caught_ in her room. A day earlier she had not been a threat, but a harmless little girl to him. Today, she was the little girl that had gotten him into trouble and walked into his domain as if nothing had happened. If she wanted him to be whipped for entering her room uninvited the night before, she just had to click her fingers and her cousin would chain him up at her aunt's request, only for his whipping to ensue. She was a threat, and he wanted her gone.

She pulled herself up to her full height, mirroring his proud silence.


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

**Just a little warning - this is the second chapter that I've posted tonight, so make sure you've read the previous chapter before you continue! ^_^**

_(Additional notes: 'Kid' is a baby/young goat, and a 'Nanny' is a female goat!)_

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**Chapter Four**

"Hello, Gajeel." She greeted, squeezing Wendy's hand reassuringly. "I believe you made a mistake yesterday."

That was a brilliant start, she found herself thinking as his entire body tensed, his eyes narrowing impossibly more, becoming a threatening glare. Well, if he had been ready to consider forgiving her, he certainly would not be now, at least not in a hurry. He seemed to straighten up a little more and Levy felt Wendy shift next to her, making her realise she was staring at the giant. Could he tell she was nervous? He had apparently understood what she had said. Maybe he did speak Fiorian?

"You chose poorly on which goat to be slaughtered – the goat was Wendy's pet." She continued, trying to give off an air of confidence.

He stared back at her, an obvious look of confusion across his hardened features. Had he not understood her? She waited for a few minutes, watching him expectantly, still holding Wendy's hand. He had understood that she had come to tell him off, but did he really not understand what she was upset about? Perhaps he understood them by their tone? Could she explain the situation using tone? Would she need Wendy to start crying to make him understand that he had upset her? That would be as cruel as making her eat her goat in the first place, and they still had plenty of it to eat.

"Goat." She stated, pointing to the stable she knew held the goats. "Wrong one. Wendy's goat." She continued, pointing to Wendy before pointing at him. "You killed Wendy's goat." She finished, running her index finger across her throat.

He seemed to have a vague understanding of what she had said as he nodded slowly, clearly thinking. He turned away from them, walking up to the stable where he had slept, disappearing inside. Levy squeezed Wendy's hand again, smiling down at the girl. If he did not reappear, she would just have to go try to explain that he needs to apologise. Maybe they do not apologise where he comes from? He certainly did not seem to speak. The most she had gotten was grunts, nods and his name. Maybe his people used body language? Could he really be _that_ barbaric?

"Huir." A rough voice grunted from the stable, soon followed by the servant's gigantic mass, a very young kid in his arms.

Levy watched as the man walked over to them, his face completely expressionless. What was he planning to do? She had not asked him to get Wendy a goat to kill, never mind one of the kids. Her aunt would be furious if they slaughtered one this young. How old was it? He knelt down slowly, holding the kid out to Wendy, who promptly hid behind Levy. Levy laughed quietly at her, stepping to the side as she released her hand. Wendy looked back up at her nervously before reaching out to take the kid from the man's outstretched hands.

"Tar huir." He smiled apologetically.

"Taar hooire?" Levy tried to repeat back, earning a snort of amusement from the crouched giant.

"Tarrr who-irrr." He growled back, a strange noise of amusement escaping him as she flinched. "Tar huir, meg." He repeated, adding another sound as he gestured to the kid in Wendy's arms.

"Tar whuir?" Levy repeated, earning a sigh and a shake of his head. "Tar huir." She repeated, earning a smirk from him. "So, what does 'tar huir' mean?"

"Tar huir." He sighed, pointing from the kid to Wendy. "Meg ev tar huir."

"Is 'tar huir' 'goat'?" Levy ventured, watching as he thought for a moment.

"'Huir' ev 'groat'." He replied, a laugh escaping Levy as he mispronounced 'goat', clapping a hand over her own mouth as she realised how terrible she must sound to him.

"I think you mean 'goat', not 'groat' – there is no 'r'." She smiled sheepishly. "Is the 'tar huir' called 'Meg'?"

"'Meg' ev oioth huir." He grumbled back, clearly not amused by her anymore, but at least he was still talking.

"You keep saying 'ev', I understand that 'huir' is 'goat', but I am not sure what you are trying to say?" Levy replied, hoping he could try to explain.

"Meg." He repeated, pointing between her and Wendy, then down to the baby goat, rolling his eyes at them, before lifting his hand to the top of his head then to his waist, then suddenly cradling an imaginary baby – what was he trying...

"Kid! The slang for child is 'kid'. A baby goat is a 'kid' – 'meg' means 'kid'!" Levy burst out, grinning happily as he smirked at her, nodding.

"This goat was born this morning, was not it?" Levy asked, a knowing smile on her lips as she began to work out what was happening. "You are giving her a new goat as an apology."

He looked back at her, clearly confused. They had been doing so well, and now she had ruined everything. He was finally talking, and she had just confused him by throwing a jumble of words, no, _sounds_ at him. Hopefully he understood the word 'goat' now, and maybe, if they were lucky, he would keep talking? Maybe they could learn to understand each other? She would have to check her books to find one in the right language, but she still had no idea what one he spoke. She had never needed to learn words for livestock in foreign languages, but now she at least had something to go on.

"Is 'tar huir' 'new goat'?" She offered, watching him carefully as she pointed to the kid in her cousin's arms.

He smirked at her, reaching forward to release Wendy's hair from its buns, ruffling it as it fell. Levy watched, stunned, as he stood back up again and turned away to head back into the stables. What had just happened? She turned to look down at Wendy, a blush on her cousin's cheeks as she buried her face in the kid's soft fur, her own hair now hanging loose down her back in its two bunches. The new barbarian servant had just given her nine year old cousin a baby goat as an apology and ruffled her hair. Maybe he was not as terrifying as he seemed? Maybe he was not a barbarian after all?

"I believe that was his way of apologising." Levy replied, still completely stunned.

"I did say that he was really quiet and scary, but that he did not seem to mean to be. He is always really helpful, but he never says anything, and does not understand what I say – I end up just pointing a lot." Wendy explained into the kid's fur.

"Well, should we put it in the stable with the other goats?" Levy suggested, hoping to be at least a little helpful.

"We should probably put it back in the stable he took it from – its mother is probably still in there." Wendy corrected, starting to walk over to the stable where the giant had spent the night. "See?"

Levy walked up to the stable and looked in, watching the nanny standing perfectly calmly eating the hay that had been left lying on the floor. The kid began to struggle as it spotted its mother, earning a happy giggle from Wendy as she lowered it to the ground. They watched as it ran up to its mother, beginning to suckle, its little tail wagging enthusiastically. They heard a strange noise of amusement from behind them, startling them. Levy turned her head to smile up at the giant who was standing watching the nanny and her kid with a proud smirk. Levy knew at that moment that he had delivered that kid. How had he known how to? Where had he learned such a skill? Where exactly did he come from, and what language had the word 'huir' for 'goat'?

"Wendy, why do we not go in for breakfast and leave these two alone?" Levy ventured, nodding to the giant servant.

"Ok!" Wendy chimed, spinning on her toes with a happy smile and running towards the front door.

"Thank you." Levy uttered almost inaudibly, slipping past the giant without looking up to check if he had heard or even understood her.

Levy sat quietly through breakfast, chewing her toast as she absently listened to her cousins talking amongst themselves, her aunt apparently already away into town with some of their eggs. He had begun talking. After one week with them, she had managed to get him to speak in less than a day. Had the others not tried to talk to him? No, Wendy had been trying. She had asked him for help a few times, and had managed to gain his help after repeatedly pointing until he worked out what she wanted. If he had a favourite out of her family, it was definitely her cousin Wendy. Perhaps he had only spoke because he had realised that he had upset his favourite, and he had needed to try to explain? He had used her to get his apology across to Wendy.

If that was the case, it was going to be a while before she got to hear him speak again.

She excused herself, gaining concerned expressions from Gray and Lucy, as she got up to leave the table, quickly making her way to the girls' wing. She calmly made her way through the open door and up the stairs, before racing along the corridor. She pushed open her door and ran across her room, her hands stopping her at the window. She leant out, searching the courtyard. She pulled back as the giant looked up at her from the opposite side of the courtyard, clearly wondering what she was up to, hanging out of a window on the first floor.

She spun around and waltzed up to her bookcase, searching it for an interesting story, one that was full of adventure and pictures of strange lands. If he showed some interest, she could ask him about where he came from using the pictures, if he did not, well, she would just have to keep trying to gain his attention. She would find out more about him. She would search for 'huir' after Lucy went to bed, but right now she was going to try to gain more clues. Wendy had his attention, so would she if she had her way. She was going to teach him her language, and he was going to tell her his stories. She would maybe even have Lucy write them down as their own personal book.

She found the book she was looking for and calmly made her way back to the dining room, smiling at her cousins before opening the door to head out into the courtyard. She felt Gray and Lucy exchange glances behind her, taking a deep breath as she tried to ignore them. They should have seen this coming, and perhaps they had, but they knew that Levy had always been interested in solving puzzles, learning languages and a good challenge – this foreign man just happened to provide her with all three. He would not hurt her either, or he would be whipped, or worse.

Levy stepped into the courtyard, aware of the sudden attention of the male servant. He was waiting for some sort of orders, and she was not going to give him any. She walked past him, towards the stone fountain in the centre of the cobbled courtyard that they used as both decoration and for watering the livestock. She calmly took a seat on the warm stone, positioning herself in the recently moved shadow, glancing up at the sun as she decided she had an hour before the shadow would completely leave her. She would have to move back inside then or risk him realising she wanted to stay hidden from the sun. She did not need that embarrassment.

The two politicians' sons had not laughed at her pale skin, and her cousin did not laugh at her for it either, only at the fact that she used it as an excuse to stay inside to read. Would a man such as the new servant laugh at her for her frailty? He had clearly spent most of his life at the mercy of the sun, adventuring across lands, only to find himself a chained servant. This man was clearly strong and proud, so what was he doing here, serving her uncle's family? What had he been doing at the border between Fiore and Bosco?


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima.**

_(Finally off of hiatus! I'll try to post update dates for next week on my profile ^_^ Still looking for a BETA, if anyone is interested ^_^ )_

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**Chapter Five**

"So is the new servant settling in well?" Her uncle inquired, looking down the table at his wife as his knife sliced effortlessly through tender goat. "I would have brought him back myself, but I thought he would be of more use to you here than on the frontline with me. I see you managed to maintain a good supply of prepared meat this time."

"He is settling in very well, and we have only had one misadventure." Her aunt smiled back, glancing at Levy.

"Oh? What did the fool do?" Her uncle returned, following his wife's gaze, causing Levy to lean back from the table slightly in an attempt to hide behind Gray.

"I asked him to slaughter a goat for me, and he decided to go for a wander through the girls' wing instead of returning to the courtyard once he was finished." Her aunt replied, narrowing her eyes at Levy. "He managed to find himself in our niece's room."

"I hope you gave him a good whipping for that one!? I assume he did not hurt her before he was removed?!" Her uncle barked, looking between Levy and his wife sternly.

"He did not – Lucy rang the bell, and the girl came to fetch me as per our daughter's orders." Her aunt began, glaring at Levy. "However, our niece pleaded that he should not be whipped for the incident."

"What?! He walked through our house, wandered into a room where he found himself our eldest daughter and our niece, and he was not whipped?!" Her uncle exclaimed, his voice dripping with disgust. "Levy?! Is this true?!"

"Yes, Uncle, but he-"

"There is no excuse that I will accept! He may not be a full-grown man yet, but he could still have harmed the two of you! How dare you order your aunt not to whip him?!" He yelled, glaring down the table at her, forcing everyone around the table to tense.

"I will chain him up after dinner, Father." Gray stated, breaking the silence as he moved to continue to eat.

"There is no point – he will not understand what he has done wrong by this time." His father sighed, turning back to his own plate.

"Is he really not a full-grown man, Father?" Lucy ventured, wishing to continue the conversation away from Levy.

"He is not." Her father returned, looking down the table at her with a thoughtful expression. "We have seen men of his kind before, but we do not know where they come from. We seen an impressive male three summers ago – one with a great head of silver hair, much like the boy. He was a good six and a half foot tall, with arms the size of tree trunks. He was sent off to the capitol for his Highness' amusement, but when we came across the boy a month ago, I had to claim him for myself. I decided I could make use of him, and turn him into a hardworking, loyal servant before he grew to his full size. I would say he is only a few years older than your brother."

"What language do his people speak?" Levy asked eagerly, forgetting that she was supposed to be lying low.

"They understand very basic phrases of various languages, if the male from three summers ago is a good example, but we are not sure what language is actually theirs. The boy has yet to speak, but he responded to the three languages we threw at him." Her uncle sighed, rubbing his beard. "He did not seem to actually understand, other than we wanted him in the cage or we would begin to punish him again – he could take quite the beating, especially for such a young man. Gray should perhaps take a turn with him before he leaves for the Barracks." He mused, smirking at his son.

"He keeps calling me 'Meg'." Chimed a quiet voice, causing Levy to smile.

"What? You have managed to force him to speak? Not just grunt?" Wendy's father questioned eagerly, sitting forward in his seat. "Where did he get 'Meg' from? He does realise that your name is 'Wendy'?"

"It is a word from his language." Levy giggled, earning a surprised look from everyone but Wendy. "He is not calling her 'Meg', he is calling her 'meg' with a small 'm'. To him, he is calling her 'kid', like a baby goat, or maybe just as in a child."

"Levy, you understand the boy?" Her uncle gasped, looking at her with his dark eyes wide beneath his midnight blue hair.

"Not exactly, but I now know a few words from asking him to apologise to Wendy for slaughtering her favourite goat." Levy replied sheepishly, turning away from her uncle's gaze.

"Do you think you could teach him Fiorian, or do you believe it to be a hopeless cause?" He asked, genuine curiosity in his low voice.

"Perhaps, but it would be helpful to know what language he speaks – I cannot find the word 'huir' in any of my books." Levy sighed, stabbing a chunk of goat with her fork. "Also, he shows no interest in speaking to me, or the book in my hand for that matter. All he cares about are the animals and cleaning the courtyard! He feeds them and then just starts sweeping while I am trying to read. When I move to come back inside, he heads into the stables to move the animals out to the fields so he can clean the stables."

"I thought you read your books in your room? Since when do you risk that pale skin of yours?" Her uncle teased, clearly genuinely intrigued.

"Our niece has found herself in the courtyard for an hour every morning after breakfast for the last week. I would discourage her from such behaviour, but it is gaining her some fresh air. I am sure you can see that she already looks healthier." Her aunt chimed, looking pleased with herself.

"Really? In the courtyard, Levy? That seems a little bold of you." Her uncle joked, clearly eyeing her suspiciously. "Perhaps you could spend that hour trying to teach the fool to speak."

"If you wish, Uncle. I should perhaps inquire in town about books concerning livestock, since that seems to be the easiest way to gain a response from him." Levy replied calmly, resisting the urge to push the matter, the subject of new books being a dangerous subject between her and her aunt.

"Of course." He returned, giving his wife a warning glance as she moved to speak. "Gray has to go into town anyway, so the two of you could go, obviously taking the boy so that you do not need to impede on your cousin's tasks."

"Thank you, Uncle." Levy smiled, glancing between the plates of food that were finally being finished, eager to be released to her room.

Lucy grabbed her wrist, gaining her attention just as her aunt stood from the table to dismiss them. Levy could tell from the concern in Lucy's eyes that she was not happy with the recent arrangements. She just wanted to learn, and this man most likely had so much he could teach her. She could not wait for him to understand her, for her to understand him, so that he could tell her of his adventures. Perhaps she would finally find out where he had come from, and why he had been at the Fiore-Bosco border. Maybe she should try to tell him about the other male that her uncle had come across? Perhaps their servant would know the other male? Or maybe they really were lone hunters that just travelled wherever they wished? That would certainly explain the lack of a language, and the fragments they understood.

Levy allowed Lucy to pull her along the corridor, her mind focused more on the prospect of conversing with the giant than her cousin's concern. She heard a door click closed and felt herself being pushed back onto a bed, awakening her from her thoughts. She looked around the room, quickly recognising it as Lucy's from the many quills resting in the inkwell. Only Lucy would have need of so many, while only she had a need of so many books. She smiled at her cousin as she sat up on the bed, ready for the coming tide.

"What were you thinking?!" Lucy exclaimed, throwing her arms up into the air in exasperation. "You will be alone with him! Do you really want that!? Do you really want to spend your time teaching that _barbarian_ to speak!?"

"Lucy, I will be fine. If he had wanted to hurt me, he would have done it before now." Levy sighed, shaking her head at her best friend's concern. "He has shown kindness towards Wendy, and he has shown us no ill will even though he wears shackles."

"Wendy is a _child_! _We_ are the women at risk! My sisters are still _too young_ to be of interest to him!" Lucy argued, a note of desperation in her voice. "You admitted yourself that he refers to Wendy as a child!"

"He could be calling her a 'baby goat'? I am not sure which." Levy replied sheepishly, more interested in her attempt at translating than the idea of her being at risk from the male servant.

"In which case, he possibly wants to eat her in front of a nice hot fire with us waiting for him in his nice comfy stable!" Lucy snapped back sarcastically, glaring at Levy.

"Gajeel would not hurt Wendy." Levy sighed, getting up from the bed. "And he will not hurt us either. I do not know what he was doing trying to cross into Fiore from Bosco, but I do intend to find out. Now, if you do not mind, I am going to my own room."

"Do not say I did not warn you, Levy." Lucy returned, following her to the door. "He will end up hurting you, even if he does not mean to."

Levy pulled the door closed behind her, falling back onto it as she fought back tears. Why could Lucy not understand? She had to find out more about the supposed barbarian that was so gentle with her nine year old cousin. How could such a kind man be a barbarian? He had helped one of the goats give birth, and then given a young girl the kid as an apology. He had laughed companionably with her, and he had watched the nanny and her kid with pride. He could not be a dangerous barbarian, just a misunderstood boy. She had to learn to understand him, that was just who she was.

She turned towards the end of the corridor, quietly making her way to her room. She had to make it there before anyone saw her. Why was she the only one trying to understand him? Why was she alone in this? She was not. Wendy liked the male servant, and Wendy had always been a good judge of character. If Wendy liked him, then she could not be wrong about her faith in the supposed barbarian. She closed her bedroom door behind her, walking up to the window to look out onto the courtyard below. The giant looked back up at her from the edge of the fountain, a sweeping brush in his hands. She waved back down at him shyly, watching as he cautiously lifted a hand, his expression unreadable from such a distance.

She smiled and turned back to face into her room, not looking back at the boy. He was finishing his duties for the night, and so would she. She calmly walked up to her bookcase and lifted a small maroon leather-bound notebook. It had been the closest she could find to his eyes in the house, and a colour such as his eyes would be too expensive for an orphan like her to afford. She opened it as she turned to her bed, collapsing onto her stomach, as she looked at her scribbled handwriting. She had five words written down on the first page, three with their definitions. She would find out the meaning of the other two, just as she would learn to understand him.

Tomorrow she would make him pay attention to her.


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

**Sorry this is a day late! I've been having serious connection problems! I have actually been trying to contact some of you wonderful readers, but my internet keeps cutting out! :( Next update will be Friday (tomorrow), rather than Saturday/Sunday, since family things have come up.**

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**Chapter Six**

Levy threw a light, peach dress on, grabbing her hairbrush to run through her hair as she turned to the window, resting on its ledge. She began pulling at her short blue waves, as she slipped on her sandals, watching the male servant walking between the stables, feeding each of their livestock in turn, completely oblivious to everyone's plans for him. As far as he was aware, he would just spend his day doing his usual chores, but Levy had other plans. She even had her uncle's approval. She was taking the male servant book shopping.

She ran out of her room, knocking on Wendy's door as she raced past. She giggled back over her shoulder as her youngest cousin's head suddenly appeared out of her door, a surprised expression across it. The quicker they finished breakfast, the quicker she could leave, and she only had breakfast to persuade '_meg'_ to join her. She had learned over the last week that the supposed barbarian was perfectly happy to follow the nine year old around, helping her with her goats on top of his usual duties. Perhaps he would even happily follow her into town?

"Good morning, Uncle." Levy chimed, taking her seat at the table.

"Morning." He replied, a suspicious note to his voice. "You seem very cheery this morning."

"She was even banging on Wendy's door." Lucy sighed, stretching her arms as she wandered into the dining room. "I hope you are not planning to involve her in your scheme."

"Gajeel seems to like her, and I thought he was more likely to follow quietly if she was there too." Levy nodded, reaching for the toast in the middle of the table.

"She is nine years old! Do not encourage him!" Lucy exclaimed, her hands on her hips, Levy feeling the glare aimed at the back of her head.

"Your cousin has a point, Levy." Her uncle added from behind his newspaper. "I gave you this task since you seemed both eager and capable, but I would appreciate if you did not use my youngest daughter as bait."

"Yes, Uncle." Levy sighed, spreading butter onto her toast. "How long before we leave?"

"Gray has not appeared yet, and no, your cousin has not slept in – you woke my daughters early in your childish excitement." He replied, glancing over at her as she lowered her head.

"I am surprised Mother is letting you near a bookstore, especially since she has confiscated eight books this month." Lucy mumbled, falling into her chair, leaning onto Levy for support as she yawned.

Levy giggled, blowing on Lucy's face to make her scrunch her nose. Lucy blew back at her, causing the blue tendrils that framed her face to flutter, earning a chorus of laughter from both, receiving a glare from Lucy's father as he muttered something about waking up the whole house. Levy leaned her head on top of Lucy's which was currently resting on her shoulder. She felt Lucy take her hand under the table, intertwining their fingers. Lucy sat up, smiling softly at Levy before reaching for some toast, releasing Levy's hand to begin buttering it.

"Morning...?" A quiet voice called, signalling Wendy's arrival.

"Good morning, Wendy!" Levy cheered, turning to smile at the sleepy young girl. "I hope you do not mind, but I am kidnapping your helper today to go to the bookstore!"

"So that was why you knocked on my door?" Wendy yawned shyly behind her hand.

"Of course, why else would she at this time of the morning?" Lucy smiled, covering for Levy in case Wendy was awake enough to be suspicious.

"Levy, go inform the boy of the plans for today – I assume you will be able to make him understand to some reasonable degree?" Her uncle challenged, watching her smile guiltily at her plate.

"Yes, Uncle." She replied sheepishly, standing up from the table, glad of an excuse to leave before more accusations could be thrown at her.

She walked out into the courtyard, ignored by the giant as usual. He had learned that she came out just to read after breakfast, and therefore had no interest in giving him orders. She began to approach him, biting her lip nervously. He paused, his bucket of feed barely off the ground as he picked it back up after closing the stable door on the goats. His mesmerising ruby eyes watched her carefully as she approached, suddenly seeming very aware of how unusual the current situation was.

"Hello, Gajeel." She began, holding her head up high as he started to move again, turning his back on her to move to the next stable. "You know, it is rude to turn your back on someone when they are talking to you."

He paused, turning to look back over his shoulder at her. Had he understood? Or had she confused him by actually trying to talk to him? Perhaps he was trying to work out what she had said to him? She watched as he opened the stable door, closing it between them, still watching her warily before disappearing. Levy marched up to the door and stood on her toes, peeking over the top as she watched him pour the feed into the sheep's trough.

"Did you understand?" She asked, watching him closely, hoping he would be capable of responding to such a simple question.

"Ti." The giant grunted, glaring at her.

"Tea? I am afraid that is kept for important guests." She laughed, wondering why he would make such a strange request.

Levy flinched as he bared his sharp, white teeth at her, a deep, feral growl escaping the back of his throat. Why was he suddenly so openly threatening her? What exactly had she done wrong? She had only told him that he could not have tea. Why did he think he could make such a demand? She frowned at him, her brow furrowed as she watched him in confusion. He was still glaring at her, but he had thankfully put his teeth away – how could teeth be so sharp? They looked like they could tear through metal, never mind human flesh. What exactly was this man?

"What does 'tea' mean to you?" She questioned, watching him as he tilted his head slightly, clearly thinking.

"Nema 'huir' ev 'groat'?" He returned, his voice rough and dry as he continued to stare back at her unblinkingly.

"It is 'goat', and...is 'ev'...'is'? You have said it quite a few times now, and I have been trying to work out what words would make sense in the sentences that you have said. The only suitable conclusion would be that 'ev' translates as 'is'. Now you have just said 'Neemah huir ev goat', and I think you were asking a question...so, did you just ask...'like huir is goat'? In which case, yes." Levy rambled, getting slightly carried away as she thought about all the various possibilities.

"_Neh-ma_ 'huir' ev 'groat'." He sighed, rolling his eyes at her as he stood up straight again, pushing past sheep to get to the door.

"Neh-ma?" Levy repeated, earning a smirk from the giant. "So, what does 'tea' mean to you?"

Levy lowered herself and stepped back from the door, allowing him to leave the stable to move onto the next. She watched as he glanced thoughtfully at her, bending down to exchange his empty bucket for his pre-filled one that he had obviously laid out next to the pigs' stable before starting. He walked silently to the door, sliding the bolt to unlock the stable. Levy smiled up at him encouragingly, hoping he would work out what she was asking of him.

"Ti...?" He began, watching her carefully as she nodded. "Ti." He repeated, shaking his head.

"Yes, what does 'tea' mean?" She urged, taking a step towards him.

"Ti!" He scowled, shaking his head more forcefully.

Levy watched him turn back to the stable, quickly making his way in before the pigs could make their escape. Was 'tea' something he could not explain, or was it something to do with him shaking his head? He had been upset when she had told him that he could not have it, so was it something important? Or perhaps it was because she had laughed? She had just asked if he had understood her, so perhaps he had taken insult, thinking she was laughing at his lack of understanding? Perhaps 'tea' was his response?

"Ev 'tea' 'no'?" She asked, shaking her head as she said the word 'no', receiving a curt nod in return as he held onto his scowl. "Your orders are different today." She continued, deciding to change back to her original course, filing her new word in the back of her mind. "You are to come into town with my cousin and me, and together, the two of us, we are going to look at books. Do you understand?"

"Ti." He grunted back, glaring at her but standing almost to attention, clearly having recognised the word 'orders'.

"You are to come into town." She repeated, watching him closely as he stared back at her blankly. "Town?"

"How are you planning to get him to learn to speak if you cannot get him to understand a simple order?" Gray laughed, walking up behind her and laying a hand on her shoulder.

"I plan to use the pictures in my books until he gets the basics, and then I will move onto joining words together – although, I now know his words for 'is' and 'no', so this should be a little easier." She nodded, smiling across at the giant who now stood completely emotionless.

"You know, he is supposed to be learning our language, not you learning his." Gray teased before turning to the giant. "You." He began, pointing at the male servant before turning his hand to point at both of them in turn. "Us. Town." He finished, pointing at the gate, receiving a nod of understanding from the supposed barbarian. "And that, Levy, is how you get him to follow an order. Keep them short and simple." Gray smiled at her before holding up a set of chains.

"What are those for?" Levy gasped, staring at the heavy links of dull, cold metal in her cousin's hand.

"I am going to chain his ankle cuffs together so that he cannot run." Gray replied, watching as the giant calmly walked out of the stable, his expression hard and unreadable as Gray bent down to connect the two uncomfortably tight-looking, thick metal cuffs that resided around the male servant's ankles together.

"Does he really have to be chained? Surely he knows he will be whipped for running?" Levy asked, biting her lip as she looked up at the giant, wondering how he must feel to be chained like an animal.

"We have not had him long enough to be sure – once he has proven himself trustworthy, he will be a much more useful servant unchained than chained." Gray sighed, tugging on the chain to check it was secure.

"But surely he could escape out the backdoor whenever he wished? It is not locked until Aunt and Uncle go to bed?" Levy frowned, beginning to follow Gray to the gate, the giant a few feet behind her.

"There is more chance of him escaping into the crowd in town and slipping into a house to evade recapture, than him safely getting away through the fields unnoticed – he knows that, and you know he knows that. He is clearly a man capable of reading the landscape to have survived out in the wild for longer than I have been alive." Gray replied as he opened the gate, leading them out of the rectangle courtyard and onto the dirt road.

"Will Gajeel be ok walking to town like that?" She asked, suddenly noticing his lack of 'basic' attire now that they were outside the holding and onto the stone-littered road. "He has no shoes?"

"He refused to wear them, and do not ask about the state of the tunic – Father said it was hard enough getting him _into_ it, without trying to persuade him to change it once it got torn. Apparently he was just wearing some sort of skirt made from animal hide around his waist when they found him." Gray sighed, smiling tiredly over his shoulder at her.

"And I have to turn him into a quiet, sensible servant that understands our language well enough to be able to carry out more complicated orders?" Levy replied, a note of dismay in her voice.

"You love a challenge, right?" Gray smirked back at her.

Well, that was certainly true, but perhaps this man would prove to be more work than she had originally thought? He had already thrown a genuine warning at her today, and it was barely halfway through the morning. This strange man was definitely going to make things interesting. She was not going to just give up though. She _would_ learn to understand him.


	7. Chapter 7

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

**Sorry this is a little late, but I have been hardcore writing for the last couple of days...0:) I'd like to thank my wonderful BETA _makeithale_ for helping with this! (Trust me, she managed to fix so many errors and mis-phrasing!) Ch6 was uploaded yesterday, so make sure you haven't missed it or you'll be lost! I'll post next week's update dates on my profile before midnight (British time, GMT) on Sunday! ^_^ So, without further ado, please enjoy Ch7! ^_^**

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**Chapter Seven**

Levy walked silently next to Gray, feeling Gajeel glaring at her back as they walked. He had done it the whole way from the estate. She did not even need to look at him to confirm it. He was also surprisingly light on his feet, but that did explain how they had managed to mistake him for her aunt a week earlier. Gray had stayed just as quiet during the walk, but now they were in town and he was clearly beginning to search for something.

"Oi, Gray!"

Levy watched as the pink haired boy ran towards them, a wide, sharp-toothed grin aimed in their direction. She felt the giant tense behind her; apparently a fifteen year old boy running towards them is a threat. She turned and smiled reassuringly at the male servant. Instead of relaxing as Levy had expected, Gajeel glared at her in response. Why had he not been glaring if he had seen Natsu as a threat? He had clearly tensed, so perhaps there was more to Gajeel's line of thought than she had assumed? He did keep proving that he was not really a barbarian.

"Natsu! You are still coming with me then?!" Gray called back, a smirk across his lips.

"Of course!" Natsu replied, still grinning as he reached them. "Is this the new servant you were telling me about?! He really is as big as you said! I am really surprised your father is not forcing him to enlist!"

"Are _you_ being forced to enlist?" Gray returned, shaking his head at his over-enthusiastic friend.

"No! You know I am going to the moment I turn sixteen! I cannot believe you have waited this long!" Natsu snorted, punching Gray's chest. "You seriously waited until your father came back – you are such a baby!"

"I am not a baby, moron! My father told me to wait since he did not want my mother and sisters left at home without a man there!" Gray growled, punching Natsu back.

"But they have that guy!" Natsu argued, pointing at Gajeel as he watched the two of them arguing with no emotion at all. "He looks pretty strong!"

"He is! _That_ is why my father did not want them to be alone! The servant is new and clearly some sort of barbarian! Who would trust their family with him?! We do not even know how much we can trust him yet!" Gray exclaimed, kicking Natsu hard enough in the stomach to send him stumbling back a few steps.

"So can we try sparring with him then?" Natsu grinned, shaking off Gray's kick as if it had been nothing.

"No, Natsu, we cannot – he is here to accompany Levy to the bookstore." Gray sighed, rolling his eyes before smiling to Levy.

"And we really should get there soon or Aunt will lecture me about spending too much time there." Levy smiled back, gesturing to Gajeel to follow. "It was nice seeing you again, Natsu – you should visit the estate more. You always seem to brighten the atmosphere."

"Sure! I have not seen your cousins in over a month! Is Luce still as bossy as always?!" Natsu laughed, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Do you want me want me to let her know you asked?" Levy replied, a sweet smile across her lips.

"No! Em, I will come visit myself...She will probably be angry that I stayed away this long." He replied sheepishly, before adopting a perplexed expression. "Any idea why she is always so angry with me? She gets angry if I just suddenly turn up uninvited, but she never invites me and then gets angry because I did not visit. It really is not fair – I just cannot win with her."

"Perhaps you have already." Levy laughed, walking away from the two friends, one smirking while the other looked impossibly confused.

She could feel Gajeel watching her as she continued along the street, wondering why he had stopped glaring at her. She turned her head to smile back at him. He looked away from her, his expression completely unreadable. What was he thinking? Should she ask him? Would he understand if she did? Would she even understand his reply? The answer to the last one was most likely 'tea'. She would though, they just needed the right books.

"Here we are." She sighed happily, stopping outside the olive painted shop window.

"Ti. E up tir hieth et rkara." He growled, backing up slightly as he looked into the shop.

"All I got of that was 'no'; but unfortunately for you, you have no choice." Levy replied, making sure to add plenty of irritation to her tone. "You. In. Now."

Gajeel grunted before lowering his head to allow himself to walk in through the door. Levy followed him in, a happy smile across her lips as he did what she told him to. He was stubborn and liked to tell her 'no', but she would win. He had no choice. He was going to learn from her whether he liked it or not. She turned to look around the dark, book-crowded room with glee, glad to be amongst her wonderful friends once more. It had been too long since she had been allowed in here.

"Have a look around and let me know if you find anything you understand." She ordered quietly, not wishing to disrupt the peaceful atmosphere. "And stop being so tense."

"Rii knivag et." He grumbled, glancing around himself warily.

"You are talkative today." She smiled, starting to walk towards the section that held books written in foreign languages. "What does 'et' mean? You have said it twice in a row, so I guess it must be a common word?"

Levy watched as Gajeel rolled his eyes and sighed, making it obvious that he had, once again, not understood everything she said. She had not expected it to be easy, but some of his reactions were proving to make it interesting. She wandered off, keeping him just in her sights. She giggled as he jumped after bumping into a pile of books. He was so out of place there and clearly very far out of his comfort zone. What had he said to her? Ree nivvage et? Well, she had a few more words to look out for.

She browsed along the bookcase, searching for books on farming. There had to be some. Magnolia may not be a big town, but even it should have some books from other countries on various topics. She grinned as she spotted a green leather-bound book with a cow imprinted on its spine. That would certainly be a start. Hopefully the other books next to it would be on the same topic! She looked up at the book, trying to work out how to reach it. She could try to stand on the shelves, but they already looked like they were straining from all the books that had been over-packed onto them.

She noticed a tall wooden crate that reached halfway up her thigh under a pile of Boscan dictionaries, beginning to wonder if it would hold her. She moved the tomes, pleased with herself as she studied her find. It looked sturdy enough, so hopefully she could push it over to the bookcase and then climb onto it. She was not going to go find Gray at the Barracks. She did not need her cousin, even with his height advantage.

She began pushing against the crate with all her weight, barely stopping herself from falling as it shot across the floor in front of her. Apparently it was empty. She sighed as she righted herself, looking around her for any onlookers. She smiled and placed her hands on her hips, admiring her handiwork. The crate had stopped right under the section of shelf that she wanted to look at. She walked up to the crate and began climbing up the side, using the gaps as footholds.

She stood up, groaning as she realised she would still have to stand on her toes. Why was she so short? She reached up, trying to wrap her fingers around the book. She heard a crack under her, snapping her attention to the crate. She tried to pull on the book, wishing the shelve had not been as tightly packed as it failed to budge. An almighty crack resounded from under her, her world falling into slow motion as everything began to tilt. She closed her eyes as she waited for the pain of hitting the floor to shoot through her body.

She felt an arm wrap around her waist and pull her against something warm and solid. She held her breath, not daring to open her eyes. She could feel a heartbeat pulsing through the solid wall she was being held against. She inhaled through her nose, trying to calm herself as her own heart pounded in her chest. The scent of hay rushed into her nostrils, surprising her. Her eyes shot open, finding only dust-coloured white cloth in her field of view. She felt herself being lowered, blushing as her small body slid down an unbelievably toned, masculine one.

"Th-Thank you." She uttered, still in shock's grasp as she stared up into two stern pools of liquid rubies.

"Rkur rara oio rketmeth?!" Gajeel snapped, waving the book in her face. "Oio vkiong kuxa uvmag!"

"Gajeel, I can tell you are angry with me, but I have no idea what you are yelling at me." Levy explained, trying to stay calm through all his growling and hissing.

"Oio." He began, pointing angrily at her. "Vkrepr." He continued, holding his hand by his waist, making it painfully obvious what he was trying to say. "Oio." He repeated, pointing at her again. "Taag. Pa." He finished, jabbing his thumb at his chest.

"Oioh tag pa...'You need me'." She mumbled, fighting back tears as she accepted that he had just basically called her short and useless, someone who would always need the help of someone like him.

"Oi-o ta-ag pa." He sighed, rubbing his forehead before leaning back on the bookshelf. "Ura oio imuo?"

"Oi-o ta-ag pa." She repeated, forcing a small smile. "And I have no idea what you just asked."

She waited patiently while he continued leaning against the bookshelf, watching her thoughtfully. He stood back up, only to crouch back down in front of her, suddenly running his hands over her arms. She pulled back slightly in surprise, only to receive a growl in return. She let him continue searching her arms for something, before forcing herself out of his grasp as he began to run his hands over her body. What did he think he was doing?!

"Do not do that." She ordered, taking another step back, finding herself up against the other bookcase.

"Oio ura imuo." He replied, a small smile flickering across his lips before it was replaced with a stern, warning gaze.

"You were checking if I was okay? Was that what you asked?" Levy questioned warily, still feeling the echo of his hands on her body.

"Oav." He answered, nodding.

"Oio urah immuoh – you are okay. Say it." She ordered, standing firm as she fought the urge to cower from him.

"Oio urrra i-mu-o. _Hrirn_." He sighed, shaking his head before releasing another heavy sigh and looking her straight in the eye. "Your arre orkay."

"Oio urah i-mu-o. And you have too many 'r's again – you are okay." She replied, mimicking his sigh.

"Urrra. _Hrirn_, Vkrepr." He smirked, apparently enjoying her attitude. "You arre orkay."

"Urrra." Levy growled out, trying to copy him. "And what are you calling me? Virkreper?"

"Gihe, oio ura u Vk-rep-rrr." He grinned, ruffling her blue waves.

"Okay, I am sure you just said that I am a 'something', and what is 'gihe'? You keep making that noise, and I do not know if it is your laugh or if you are saying something?" Levy moaned, puffing out her cheeks in annoyance, earning another 'gihe' from him. "You really are laughing at me."

"Oav."

"That is 'yes', right?" Levy asked, nodding her head as she said the word 'yes'.

"Oav." He replied, nodding his own head, a smirk across his lips.

"Say it." She puffed, narrowing her eyes at him.

"Yres."


	8. Chapter 8

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

**Hey, hope you enjoy this chapter! The next will be posted either Friday or Saturday at the usual time! Of course, a huge thank you to _makeithale_ for BETAing this! ^_^ And thank you to all the wonderful people reviewing, following and favouriting this! ^_^**

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**Chapter Eight**

Levy wandered out of the bookstore, glancing back at it forlornly. She had not been ready to leave it again, but she had no choice. Unfortunately, she had not managed to find a book in Gajeel's language, but she had picked up a Fiorian book on farming that had plenty of descriptive pictures. She was pretty sure that she would be able to teach him from it. However, her other book was for her own entertainment and she was looking forward to it. She had managed to find one that she had not read and she even had a plan for getting it by her aunt unnoticed. Gajeel _did_ have to do as she said.

She looked up at the giant walking beside her just in time to catch him suddenly look away from her. What had he been looking at? She casually ran her hand through her short waves, attempting to dislodge anything that could have gotten itself stuck in her hair. She could see that he was still watching her, a curious expression across his face. She suddenly realised she was staring. She quickly snapped her head away in embarrassment at having been caught, only to find that other people in the street were staring at them.

"You know, people would not be staring at us if you had at least changed out of that torn tunic." She grumbled, looking straight ahead of her.

"Rkur?" He grunted, looking down at her as if he had not heard her.

"People." She began, trying to slyly gesture at the people around them. "Staring. Us." She finished, carefully pointing between them.

The giant suddenly fell back a step causing Levy to stop where she was. She turned to ask what he was doing, but before she could say anything, he was nodding at her to continue. She frowned at him, then turned to continue walking, pretending to ignore the male servant walking behind her with her books. She felt the eyes watching her slowly melt away; the peculiar sight was, apparently, now gone. Had it really been because he had been walking by her side? Surely it was fine? Servants usually walked alongside the people they worked for if the person was walking alone, so why was it not ok for Gajeel to walk beside her? He was supposed to be escorting her!

"Gajeel?" She began, gesturing for him to join her once more as they neared the edge of the town, "Why?"

Short and simple. Hopefully he would understand.

"Vnuxa." Gajeel grunted, looking straight ahead as he rejoined her.

"'Vinuxah'? Is that 'servant'?" She asked, pointing towards the first one that caught her eye.

"Vn-oo-xa." Gajeel sighed before nodding towards the passing female servant that Levy had pointed to. "Varxutr."

"Vin-oo-xa?" She repeated, annoyed as he rolled his eyes at her – it was not her fault his language had so many strange sounds! "So, ev 'Varuxter' 'female servant'," she began, pointing at herself for 'female', before pointing at him, "and 'Vinuxah' ev 'male servant'?"

"Ti. Vnuxa." He replied, pointing to his ankles, Levy snapping her eyes away as she remembered the chained shackles. "Varxutr." He grunted, pointing at a male servant rather than the female one that Levy had previously pointed at.

"Oio ura a 'varuxter' too." She returned, hoping she had managed to say 'you are' right, especially considering she was sure that he was trying to say he was a 'slave' rather than a 'servant'.

"Oio ura u 'varxutr' rii." He smirked, apparently impressed that she had actually tried. "E up u vnuxa."

"You are _not_ a '_slave'_!" She snapped as she spun to glare up at him, surprising both of them.

They both stared at each other, unaware of the strange looks they were getting. She could not believe she had just snapped at him like that and over what he considered himself. By the look on his face, he could not believe it either. He _was_ actually wearing shackles, which she supposed were generally not worn by better off servants, so she could understand where he would get that idea. Surely they treated him better than they would a slave, right? They always referred to him as a 'servant', which was completely different from a 'slave'. She would not be asked to teach a slave to speak Fiorian, so he had to be a 'servant'.

"Srave." He muttered, his surprise becoming a teasing smirk, making her smile back before they both started laughing, knowing the argument was pointless since neither would really understand.

"You are not a 'slave'." She sighed as they left the town, a small smile still across her lips.

She walked quietly along the road, thinking over their conversation. She had certainly learned a few new words from him and he had learned a few from her. She could not help but wonder if her mother would have been impressed. Her mother had loved reading and had regularly tried to share her gift. Levy really had missed that bookshop, but she knew she was no longer allowed there unless her uncle gave her permission and she had to hope that her aunt did not manage to successfully take it away.

"Vkrepr?"

Levy glanced up at the giant, a questioning look across his tanned face. Had he said something? Or had he noticed she was thinking about something? He had used that 'name' again and she still had to find out what it meant. It had something to do with her being small, like Wendy's was to do with the goats, but what did it actually mean? She could not help but wonder if he gave everyone a 'name', or whether her gaining one meant that she was in the special 'club' of people he actually liked. If it was the second, surely teaching him was going to be so much easier.

"I was just thinking about my mother." She replied, earning a nod from him and leaving Levy unsure as to whether he actually understood or if he just wanted her to continue – was the silence awkward for him? "Going to the bookshop reminded me of her."

"Gihe." He replied, which made no sense to Levy considering she was sure that that was his laugh – was he laughing at her because he had gotten her to do what he wanted?

"Well, if you are going to laugh at me, I will not tell you anymore." She returned, earning a look that Levy could only guess was a sign of disappointment. "Do you even understand?"

"...Oav...Virr ik..." He mumbled, looking away from her.

"Could you say that in Fiorian?" She inquired hopefully, recognising the first word as 'yes'.

"Ti." He grunted, earning a sigh from her – he was clearly as stubborn as ever. Maybe he did give everyone a name?

"I used to come to Magnolia once a week with my mother. She came to the bookshop and she would just sit down with a book, waiting for a few people to gather in front of her. Children always sat down beside me, somehow working out what was about to happen, and then their parents would join us." Levy smiled, a feeling of nostalgia washing over her. "She would start reading and, as she was reading, more people would gather around her. Her voice was smooth like silk with an amazing music-like sound to it and she was so expressive too...You could see exactly what she was describing when you listened to her voice, so much so that it was as if you were actually there..."

"No more?" Gajeel asked, turning his head down to look at her, his brilliant red irises dragging her back to the present. "Rkara ev oior pirkar?"

"No, not anymore." She sighed, pain hitting her as the truth threw itself back at her. "I am not sure what you said, but if you are asking about my mother, she died a few years ago."

"Srorry. Oior pirkar." He grunted, looking genuinely apologetic.

"Thank you." She smiled sadly, only slightly surprised at his kindness.

Her head snapped up.

"You just said 'sorry'! I never taught you that word! You _do_ know Fiorian! Why have you been pretending to not understand?! Who taught you?!" She rushed, excitement taking over her.

"Vkrepr! Vkrepr!" He barked, waving his hands at her to tell her to calm down. "Ti. Tir pokk 'Fiorian'."

"But you do know some, enough to understand a lot of what I am saying?" She inquired hopefully, strangely sure he'd just said 'not much', grinning as he nodded. "But not enough to sp-"

"Levy!"

Levy turned her head away from the giant, looking towards the gate of the estate. Lucy was standing in the gateway, waving her arms wildly at her. Had she really been standing waiting there for them to come back? Worrying that they would not? Hoping that the 'barbarian' did not hurt her? Well, at least she had some good news for her cousin. She could tell her cousin that she had invited Natsu for her. Surely seeing her friend would cheer her up? It should certainly make up for the worry that she had caused her best friend.

"It is Captain Loke!" Her cousin called, confusing Levy. "He has come to visit Father!"

Levy stopped where she was, Gajeel suddenly having to step back so that he was not in front of her. She ignored him as he stared at her, wondering what was going on and awaiting an explanation. She could not give that explanation to anyone. She had unknowingly caused a potential disaster. Captain Loke was one of the many Captains under her uncle's command, but he was more than that. He was a _favoured_ Captain. He was the man that her uncle had been trying to nudge towards his eldest daughter since she had come of age two years previous. He was the man that her uncle had hopes of marrying Lucy to.

And Levy had just invited Natsu to come visit.

Levy began running towards Lucy, leaving Gajeel standing alone in the middle of the road in her rush. She crashed into her cousin, pulling her inside the gate and holding the two of them close to the wall. She had to explain what she had just done. Where did she even start? Hopefully her uncle would not question her excitement to see his eldest daughter – he knew how close they were. The problem was how to solve the impending disaster. Natsu would come back from the Barracks with Gray and then he would end up meeting Captain Loke. He would wonder what was wrong with Lucy. He would end up just asking 'Luce'. Her uncle would be furious at Natsu's informality towards his daughter.

"I invited Natsu." She blurted out, watching Lucy's confusion slowly turn to horror.

"You what?! Natsu cannot come! Captain Loke is here and you know my father's plans! Father will be watching me! Natsu will notice I am being weird! If he discovers that Natsu is so friendly with me, he will never be allowed back! Natsu is adopted, Levy! I am a General's daughter!" Lucy cried out, grabbing Levy's arms.

"We will have to explain to him when he gets here, before Uncle sees him!" Levy suggested, hoping that there was some way to explain without hurting their friend.

"How shall we do that? Father will expect us to be sitting with them inside – how will we even know that they have arrived?! We will not have a chance! Natsu will be hurt by my ignoring him and the Captain will become suspicious!" Lucy exclaimed, fighting back tears.

Levy looked towards the front door, then to the gate. Perhaps if they left the door open? No, that would be unusual and therefore suspicious. Technically only Lucy had to be inside, perhaps Levy could sit outside, commenting that it was a nice day with the current cloud cover and she wished to make the most of it by sitting out with a book? No, she could already feel her skin tightening – any longer and Gajeel would notice her skin changing. He could not find out about her frailty or she would lose what little ground she had gained with him.

Gajeel.

"Gajeel?" She called, turning to find him standing directly behind her, making her jump slightly.

He stood completely silent and emotionless as he awaited new orders, showing no sign of amusement at her surprise.

"Gajeel, could you do something for me?" She began, waiting for him to nod before continuing, not even sure if he had understood the first question. "When Gray arrives, with the boy with pink hair, could you come get me please?"

He nodded, giving her a small smile that vanished instantly, leaving him completely emotionless once more.

"Ok, Lucy, everything will be fine." She reassured her cousin with a smile. "Gajeel will come get me and I will come explain to Natsu, and Gray, what the situation is."

"Thank you, Gajeel." Lucy smiled nervously up at the giant, before grabbing Levy's wrist and pulling her towards the front door.


	9. Chapter 9

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

**Thanks to everyone to everyone following, favouriting and reviewing! We're really enjoying the feedback! ^_^ We're trying to get the Ch10 update ready for Sunday ^_^ Thank you again, _makeithale_!**

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**Chapter Nine**

Levy sat quietly, pretending to take an interest in what the General and the Captain were discussing as Lucy occasionally added her own input. She was watching the front door out the corner of her eye, waiting impatiently for Gajeel to fetch her. Hopefully he could be relatively sly about it and, hopefully, he would see Gray and Natsu before they got to the gate. If he did not, his forewarning would have no effect. The result would be the same.

"Levy? Levy!"

"Yes!?" Levy blinked, suddenly aware of voices directed at her.

"I was asking if you thought the male servant would be ready for my return." Her uncle sighed, earning a look of understanding from the Captain.

"Return? Return from where?" Levy asked, blushing lightly as she became aware of the disbelieving stares of Lucy and her uncle, while gaining a knowing look from Captain Loke.

"From my next turn to the frontline, Levy. I am leaving at the end of the week, and I will return in two months – were you not listening at all? I know you have a habit of disappearing into a world of your own, but to miss an entire conversation?!" Her uncle lectured, glaring angrily down the table at her.

"General, go easy on the young lady. I am sure she is just thinking of her pleasant morning in Magnolia, perhaps she just happened to bump into a certain someone?" The Captain purred, his smirk directed at her, causing her entire face to heat – had he guessed the truth? He could not have; he has no idea that Natsu exists, so he could not know that she was trying to cover for Lucy!

"A certain someone? What do you mean by _that_, Loke?" Her uncle returned, narrowing his eyes at the Captain.

"Just that I believe your young niece has her eye on a certain young man and just so happens to be thinking of him at this very moment, having bumped into him in town." The Captain replied, clearly pleased with Levy's reaction – she had no idea how to react to this particular accusation, since it would help Lucy, but she had no intention of marrying _Natsu_.

"And who would this young man be, Levy? You have not mentioned anyone – is this why you refused your previous two suitors?" Her uncle interrogated, leaning forward in his chair, eyeing her with obvious inner excitement.

Levy jumped up from her seat, hearing a knock on the front door. She called to the person to come in, praying that the subject would be dropped at the arrival of a visitor. She sighed with relief as Gajeel slowly opened the door, bowing his head slightly to enter. She smiled expectantly at him while he watched her with serious red eyes, the black slits surprisingly wide in the dim room, candles being the only source of light in the dining room.

"Have they arrived?" Levy inquired hopefully, realising he was not going to speak first, receiving a curt nod in return.

"So this is your new _servant_? I see he has not changed much since I last saw him – his tunic clearly needs changing. Does he actually understand our language now?" Captain Loke smirked, watching the giant with narrowed eyes. "He certainly seems to have gained _some_ manners, even if he still has no idea how to address a lady."

"Levy is going to teach him Fiorian. She was showing great interest in him, so I asked if she would like to take on the task as a little hobby." Her uncle replied, causing Levy's gaze to drift from Gajeel's eyes to the stone floor at her feet. "She took him into town this morning in search of a useful book." He continued before turning to look at Levy. "I trust you found one?"

"I could not find one in his language, but I did get a book on Fiorian farming that had plenty of descriptive pictures – I will be able to use those, since I have managed to work out a potential method." She smiled confidently back, before turning back to Gajeel, still directing her voice to her uncle. "Now, I must go outside for a moment, just to inform Gray of Captain Loke's presence as Lucy did for me. It is only fair, considering he hopes to eventually fight under the Captain, and I am sure Lucy is far too interested in staying in here listening to his stories, to find herself interested in warning her brother."

Levy calmly made her way out of the door, soon followed by Gajeel who once again had to duck to escape back into the light. She smiled apologetically up at him as he closed the door, but he just stared emotionlessly back, his slits back to their usual narrow strip of black cutting through ruby. She sighed before turning to walk down the courtyard to the gate, stopping instantly as she spotted the two boys waiting by the fountain.

"Gajeel required us to stop here for some reason, but I can see that was clearly on your order – congratulations on getting him to do what you wanted him to." Gray smiled, beckoning to Levy that she could approach.

"Sorry, but I thought that the two of you should be warned." She began, watching as the two immediately became serious. "Uncle has a visitor. Lucy met me at the gate to warn me and I told her that I had invited Natsu. Lucy began to panic when I told her that. So I asked Gajeel to come get me when the two of you arrived so that I could at least warn you...and explain to Natsu why Lucy is about to act very peculiarly before he can ask her himself."

"Why could Luce not tell me herself?" Natsu asked, looking more than a little puzzled. "Should I run back to tell my sister not to come?"

"Your sister is coming? Well, actually, that might be a good thing...possibly? How is she? I should have asked earlier, sorry!" She babbled, forgetting what she was supposed to explain as she began to factor in the unexpected additional guest.

"His sister is fine and hopefully will be married within the year. Now, Levy, can you please get onto whatever has my sister panicking?" Gray replied, his expression still perfectly serious.

"Captain Loke is here." She stated, watching as dismay appeared in his dark eyes.

"Captain Loke? Is that not the Captain that you liked? What is so bad about him visiting?" Natsu asked, looking between Gray and Levy.

"Our father has plans for Lucy, but Lucy is not quite sure that she wants to go along with them. Having you here complicates things even more." Gray explained, sighing as Natsu's expression remained one of confusion. "Basically, Lucy likes someone else, but our father wants her to marry Captain Loke. You being here while he is here complicates things because you do stupid things like call her 'Luce' and enter her 'personal space'. If you start doing either of those in front of my father, or the Captain, there will be some questions and you will likely be asked to leave, with the order of never returning."

"But I could just see Luce in town, right?" Natsu suggested, his smile back.

"No, you would never be allowed to see her again, Natsu. You cannot call her 'Luce', ok? Try not to talk to her unless she talks to you, alright?" Gray explained, a stern expression directed at Natsu until the pink haired boy finally nodded in understanding. "Now let us go inside."

"I will be in soon. I just wish to explain something to Gajeel." Levy smiled, ushering the two boys inside and closing the door behind them.

"Vkrepr?"

"I know I have a lot of explaining to do and I do not even know how much of it you will understand, but please do not be upset with me! I need to thank you for stopping them here, and for coming to get me without giving anything away to my uncle, and I really need to thank you for saving me from an embarrassing situation." Levy rushed, looking pleadingly up at the giant.

"Ura oio imuo?" He grunted, turning his head away from her with a sigh.

"Urra oio imuoh...? Oh! Are you ok! I could be better, but thank you for asking!" She grinned happily, earning an eye roll. "Family is confusing, know what I mean?"

"Oav." He smirked, turning to the stables.

"So you lived with your family, before you came here?" She began eagerly, following after him.

"Vkrepr." He growled, not turning to look at her as he looked over the first stable door to check the rabbits.

"You really will not talk about anything before here, will you?" She sighed, resigning herself that she would have to get him to trust her more before he would tell her anything. "Anyway, what Uncle was saying in there...I do not know why, but he has agreed to let me teach you...and sorry if that seems a little forward – I would never mean to offend you! I just find you very intriguing, and I really want to find out more about you...and if you will let me, I would like to learn your language...so that _I_ can understand _you_. Do you understand?"

"Yres... Oio vkiong kuxa uvmag, Vkrepr. E renn tir naurt krip oio." Gajeel replied, still staring over the door.

After a moment of silence, Levy just staring at the cobbles, unsure of what to say, Gajeel glanced back at her, a thoughtful expression in his eyes as she finally brought hers up to look back at him.

"E renn raukk oio vipa rirgv ek oio uvm rkiohk."

"Wh-What?" She asked nervously, his expression not matching the almost threatening sounds escaping him.

"Ir teerch your, irf your arzk." He grunted back, Levy's jaw dropping in response. "Onry zome wordz. Wrong to teerch."

"You just...You just tried to speak to me...in Fiorian...You actually...Gajeel...?" She gaped, barely able to form a sentence as she stared up at the giant in disbelief.

"Po kurkar." He sighed, turning away from her. "Warnt learn?"

"Yes! Yes, I would love to learn your language! That wo-"

"Wordz! Tir nuthouha!" He snapped, glaring at her before turning back to move to check the chickens.

"Words work for me and I will teach you words in return – I will teach you to pronounce Fiorian properly!" Levy smiled happily, spinning around to head back inside the house.

"E renn tir naurt krip oio, Vkrepr."

"I still have no idea what you are saying, so you will have to teach me that in the morning, and I will teach you how to say it properly in Fiorian, ok?" She returned, waving off his attempt to likely refuse her.

She opened the door and waltzed in, a happy smile on her lips. Her smile faltered as she closed it, her eyes falling on the current party. Around the top of the table were her uncle, the Captain, Gray and Natsu, while Lucy sat three seats down from Gray, an additional one having been added for Natsu. Another had been added next to the Captain for Natsu's sister's arrival, while Levy's youngest two cousins' seats remained unoccupied, as was hers and her aunt's. Her aunt would be preparing dinner, along with Wendy and her sister. Levy would be stuck between Natsu and Lucy during dinner, while Natsu sat in his best behaviour and Lucy attempted to ignore him, having to focus all her attention on the Captain.

How long did she have before Natsu's sister arrived? The party was currently discussing military tactics, gaining both the boys' attentions, but would they really have to sit through that all dinner? Natsu and his sister usually livened things up, but Natsu was acting weird considering he had been told to be on his best behaviour. How long could he remain serious? If he said 'Luce' just once, everything could be ruined. What had she done?

She fought the urge to return to the likely very grumpy Gajeel and walked up to the table, taking her seat with a forced smile.


	10. Chapter 10

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

**Hello! Sorry this didn't get updated on Sunday :( Moving was a lot more time-consuming and stressing than I expected...It took me three days in the end...Anyway! Here's chapter ten! I'll be away from this Friday until the Sunday 9 days later (away for 10), so there won't be any update next week at all. We'll try to get you a couple of updates for the following week though! Thank you so much to makeithale for BETAing this! And to everyone who is reading, reviewing, following and favouriting this! Hope you enjoy this next chapter!**

* * *

**Chapter Ten**

Levy smiled down at her plate, admiring her aunt's presentation. The chunks of chicken were in the centre, soaked in oil, tomatoes, and various other vegetables. Around it lay a bed of pale penne pasta, making the colours within the tomato chicken seem even brighter in contrast. She had certainly chosen well if she was trying to show off for the Captain. In fact, she was even trying to explain that it would have tasted more delicious if Lucy had made it, which earned noises of agreement from Natsu between mouthfuls. Her aunt even went on to add that her daughter's presence seemed more necessary in the dining room with her father and the Captain, than in the kitchen helping with dinner.

Her aunt was certainly trying very hard.

"So, I believe there are two other guests at this table, so perhaps I may allow the conversation to move more to include them? The beautiful young lady next to me, I am sure, must have something interesting to add?" The Captain suggested, winking at the blushing Lucy and earning a grateful smile in return.

"As I said on their arrival, this is my son's friend, Natsu, and his elder sister, Erza Scarlett. Erza is the only daughter of Robb Scarlett – do you remember him?" Levy's uncle asked, stabbing a piece of pasta and dipping it in the sauce.

"The Drill Sergeant at the Barracks? I certainly remember him well! He had me doing laps for weeks!" The Captain laughed as he began his own meal.

"Yes, that is the man in question! He is the girl's father and, before you ask what happened to him, please allow me to explain. You see, her mother died six years ago, from the same thing that took Levy's dear mother. You won't remember my niece's mother, but she was very nice woman; sadly that was her undoing, all that time with those less fortunate. Anyway, Old Rob had to retire to raise his daughter." Her uncle continued after taking a long - and rather noisy - gulp of wine. "Of course, by then, a supposed miracle had happened. You see, Erza's mother almost died giving birth to her, so they decided that they would not try again, even though they did not have a son. So, low and behold, ten years ago - four years before his wife died - he and his wife wake up to find a five year old boy sitting on their doorstep."

"A five year old boy? Someone left a five year old boy on their doorstep? That seems a little farfetched, do you not think? Had it been a girl, as sad as it would be, it would be at least a little more understandable! But to leave your potential heir on someone's doorstep?! General, you are pulling my leg, I tell you!" The Captain exclaimed merrily, looking between Natsu, Erza and his General.

"I do not! The boy will tell you the same thing himself! He was left on the doorstep by a woman, whose description he has always refused to give, and found by Robb and his wife! They decided it was a miracle and they adopted him as soon as they heard his story. He says he was brought from somewhere else, hidden in a _box_ of all things, and then left on the doorstep." Her uncle finished, smirking back at the disbelieving look on the Captain's face.

"Is this true, boy?" The Captain demanded, watching Natsu carefully.

"Completely, Captain. My name is Natsu though, not 'boy'." Natsu returned, not looking up at the Captain.

"Natsu!" Gray snapped quietly, elbowing him in the side.

"I am very sorry, Natsu, I did not mean to offend you." The Captain replied cockily, raising his glass to the pink haired young man.

"Do not worry, he will eventually learn manners; he plans to enter the military. I am sure his sister's fiancé will be able to put a good word in for him." Her uncle smirked, glancing down the table at Natsu.

"Ah, that is a very good choice indeed, Natsu! You look like you will do well." Captain Loke smiled, looking him over. "You are only fifteen, I believe? You are certainly in very good shape!"

"Yes! Natsu is really strong! You should see him sparring! He is on par with my brother, even though he is a year younger!" Lucy cheered enthusiastically, before quickly realising her mistake. "Although, Captain, I would love to see _you_ spar! I bet _you_ would win easily against either of them!"

"Yes, that would be very interesting indeed." Levy added, trying to back her best friend up.

"Perhaps once they have had some training, I will spar with them and show you what I can do – I do not want to hurt them by accident!" The Captain replied charmingly down the table. "Although, I believe you have met my last sparring partner."

"That is very kind of you, Captain Loke." Lucy smiled bashfully, sighing within as his ego saved her. "Who was this sparring partner, may I ask?"

"He is none other than the giant outside – I was one of the men that brought him down!" The Captain boasted, holding his head proud as he lifted his glass up to her.

"_You_ brought down Gajeel?!" Levy gasped, startling the rest of the table.

"Why is that such a surprise, my dear Levy? The barbarian is not as strong as my men and me! I shall prove myself at this very moment if you wish?! Why do we not fetch the fool in now!?" Captain Loke suggested loudly, standing from the table.

"I do not believe my cousin was suggesting that you could not, more that she did not think she would ever meet such a strong man! She was very surprised when she met the new servant, you see, so at the moment he still seems impossibly strong and intimidating." Lucy exclaimed, standing from the table herself to gain his attention.

"She did not seem intimidated earlier?" The Captain returned, narrowing his eyes suspiciously at Lucy.

"Father was in here when he came for her and Gray accompanied her into town with him. When she went outside earlier with him, she knew that Natsu and my brother were in the courtyard." Lucy explained while keeping an amazingly calm exterior. "What I am trying to say is that she knew she was safe. When I called to her from the gate earlier, she came running to me as fast as she could – she had had to walk from the bookstore to the edge of the estate alone with him. If you have not noticed, he is easily two or three times the size of her."

"She is rather small." Captain Loke agreed, smiling politely at Lucy before taking his seat once more.

"Captain Loke, I was wondering if you knew my fiancé?" Erza interrupted, earning a silent 'thank you' from the rest of the table. "Jellal Fernandez?"

"Jellal Fernandez? I believe I have met him a few times. He is an Immune, I believe? He has particularly bright blue hair and a very intriguing scarlet facial tattoo, if he is the man I am thinking of." The Captain replied thoughtfully, clearing his plate.

"That is him." Erza smiled, glancing down the table at Lucy and Levy.

"Charming man, if not a little quiet, but I guess that does fit with his occupation within the special task regiment." Captain Loke added, attempting to compliment her on her choice.

"He is shy, but he is both strong and sweet. We have known each other for many years, since we were children in fact. My father approves of him and Natsu seems to quite like him these days." Erza continued, glancing hopefully towards the kitchen as she finished her own plate.

"When is Jellal returning?" Levy inquired, wondering if she was the only one who had noticed the longing look the kitchen was gaining from the tall, busty, red haired woman.

"Hopefully soon." Erza smiled proudly. "He was summoned to Crocus for a special mission and he said in his letter that he hopes to be home before the month is over."

"That is wonderful, Erza! You must let us know when he returns and we shall have the two of you here for dinner!" Levy's aunt chimed from the end of the table, suddenly reminding the others of her presence and earning a glare from her husband. "Now, I believe it is getting late, and we cannot have your father worrying about you! Erza, why not take your brother home for the night and we shall all make our way to our rooms for the evening?"

"Yes, Natsu, you could come back tomorrow for some sparring? I do not want you using exhaustion as an excuse when I beat you tomorrow." Gray smirked at Natsu, earning looks of relief from others around the table.

"Oi! I am not going to lose to you! Luce-y, what do you think?! You know I will win, right?!" Natsu called out, standing from his seat.

"Natsu, just go home or you will be tired." Lucy sighed, glad that the Captain and her father had had too much to drink to pick up on his little slip up.

"Okay...See you tomorrow..." Natsu huffed, shuffling towards the door.

"Thank you for the dinner, it was very delicious." Erza chimed as she stood up, before marching around the dining table and joining Natsu.

Erza grabbed hold of Natsu's ear to drag him out the door, turning to smile at Lucy and Levy before leaving out of the front door. Levy smiled politely to the Captain before standing up herself, finding Lucy immediately by her side as she began to move away from the table. She had planned a quiet evening alone in her room with her notebook, but she was obviously not going to get that. She calmly followed Lucy up the steps into the girls' wing and continued along to her room, Lucy stopping her before she could turn the handle.

"Thank you...I do not know what I would have done tonight without you and Erza." Lucy smiled sheepishly, a hand on Levy's arm.

"I caused the problem, Lucy, and I am really sorry to have put you through that." Levy replied, wrapping her arms around Lucy comfortingly.

"You provided the solution, Levy. I do not know how I could have managed an entire dinner with them – everything would have been so serious! Even when he is trying to be serious, Natsu can brighten up a room! Captain Loke is very charming. I could not argue if Father demanded me to marry him – I am sure he would make me very happy." Lucy returned, nuzzling into her neck. "You tried to cover my mistakes and Erza is always a master at providing an alternative topic! It was rather funny, though, when she started looking for dessert!"

"I am so glad I was not the only one who noticed!" Levy laughed, holding Lucy tighter. "Although I hope Uncle did not notice?"

"I do not think he did, however I believe Mother noticed! I suppose she was likely very grateful to have an excuse to break up the dinner party – Father was getting rather loud. I am certainly glad that Erza and Natsu can take everything within their stride." Lucy sighed, beginning to pull back. "Right, I shall make my way to my bed. It has certainly been a tiring evening and I bet a long day for yourself."

"Very." Levy groaned, rubbing her shoulders lightly as she tried to look at them for any damage. "I shall see you tomorrow, Lu."

"Goodnight, Lev."

Levy wandered into her room, making her way over to her window. She plopped herself down onto the windowsill, leaning back against the white painted wooden frame as she watched the young man doing his final sweep of the courtyard. They had certainly made some ground today, but perhaps they could make even more tomorrow? She just had to persuade him to learn from her. Although, he was willing to teach her a few words and technically he already had. Maybe she could turn that around?

She waved down at him as he finished, apparently spotting her watching him. He raised his hand briefly before walking towards her. She froze, unsure of what to do. Was he coming to speak to her? Was he allowed to do that? She watched as he disappeared into the storage room below her and Lucy's bathroom, before reappearing without the brush. He had just been putting his brush away, not coming to speak to her.

"Tehkr, Vkrepr." He called up as he walked away from her, not looking back.

"Tekher, Gajeel." She called back quietly, hoping he had heard her as she moved back from her window.

They had _definitely_ made some progress.


	11. Chapter 11

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

**Thanks for your patience while I was away on holiday! Thank you to every wonderful reviewer/follower/favouriter! And a huge thank you to makeithale who's done a wonderful job BETAing this! ^_^**

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**Chapter Eleven**

Levy smiled quietly to herself. Gajeel's words from the night before had been echoing through her mind since she woke up. He had actually called to her and she was sure he had said 'night, Vkrepr'. He was actually actively speaking to her! Today, she was going to learn from him and she was going to teach him, whether he liked it or not. The longer they have together, the closer she should be able to get to him. The closer she got to him, the more likely it was that he would finally trust her enough to tell her his stories.

She sat up from her bed, turning her head to try to look out of the window. She spotted him instantly, already sweeping the courtyard with chickens around his feet. Had she slept in? He was normally just checking on the livestock at this time, right? He did not get around to sweeping until after they had had breakfast. Lucy would have come to find her, rather than let her miss it. Perhaps he had decided to change his routine today? Were the goats, sheep and pigs in their fields already? He could not have the chickens out before he did, or he would have to put them back before he could get the others out. What was he doing?

She climbed out of her bed, hurrying to her door and making her way along the corridor. She calmly descended the stairs and walked into the dining room, earning a very confused look from her aunt. She nodded to her aunt before heading to the front door, opening it slightly to look out, finding Gajeel exactly where she expected to. What was he doing? She had to have slept in, but why would her aunt be surprised by her presence if she had?

"Levy, you have not slept in." Her aunt's voice sighed from behind her, making her close the door and turn to look at the tired-looking woman. "He was up early this morning; it would not surprise me if he did not sleep either."

"'Either', Aunt?" Levy inquired, walking up to her to lay a hand on her shoulder sympathetically.

"Your uncle was not happy at me breaking up the dinner party last night, so he was a little loud for about an hour – he probably kept poor Wendy up, unlike _you_ at the far end of the wing – then he was rolling all over the bed in his sleep, like he always does after he has had too much to drink." Her aunt moaned, falling down onto one of the chairs at the table. "He is still asleep, so do not expect him before noon."

"Do you need a hand, Aunt? I am sure I can manage to make the breakfast for you?" Levy suggested, sitting down next to her.

"No, no...You go see if you can settle the barbarian. I have a feeling that the Captain's presence is unsettling him, if what the Captain was saying last night about being one of the men to help capture him was true. The fool probably has no idea what is going on and perhaps thinks he is about to be shoved into another cage to be moved elsewhere." Her aunt waved dismissively, smiling weakly at Levy.

"As you wish." Levy smiled back, briefly hugging her aunt before getting up and making her way to the front door.

Levy stepped out the door, startling the giant on the other side of the courtyard. Well, she was out early, so her appearing would certainly be a surprise. She began walking across the courtyard, sighing as he went back to sweeping. Did it really look like she was planning to sit at the fountain to read? She had no book with her. Maybe this was his way of telling her that he would not learn from her?

"Good morning, Gajeel. My aunt tells me you have been up for some time now?" Levy began, crossing her fingers behind her back, hoping that he would understand.

"Vkrepr." He grunted, not looking at her.

"Gajeel, what is bothering you?" She tried again, walking past the fountain.

"Oio." He sighed, turning towards her but still looking elsewhere. "Tir etraravrag, Vkrepr."

"You know that all I understood of that was 'you'." She sighed, frowning up at him as she reached him.

"Oio." He began, pointing at her. "Pa." He continued, pointing to himself. "Ti." He finished shaking his head while gesturing 'no' with his hands.

"Is this to do with me teaching you?" She replied, wondering what he meant by what seemed to be 'you, me, no'.

"Ti, Vkrepr. E up tir etraravrag." He sighed, gesturing to all of her.

Levy watched him carefully, thinking through what he could be saying. He turned away from her again, going back to his sweeping. She looked down herself, instantly wrapping her arms around herself as she realised what she had done. She had been that confused by his supposed change in routine that she had come straight downstairs, not thinking to dress herself. She had come out to speak to Gajeel in her nightgown. She had no idea what he was saying, but it was likely to be something to do with her current apparel. She ran back across the courtyard, shoving the door open as she slammed into it, before running up the stairs and straight into her bedroom at the far end of the corridor.

She fell back against her bedroom door, sliding down to the floor. She pressed her hands against her cheeks, feeling the heat radiating from them. She had to go out there after breakfast to teach him Fiorian and she had just walked up to him in her nightgown. What was he thinking after her appearing before him like that? How could she go back out there? It was Gajeel; he was almost uncaring and emotionless most of the time, only showing himself to be more than that when around Wendy, or when he actually felt sorry for her. He would not even be bothered by it. She had a job to do, so she did not have a choice, but he would not make her feel awkward.

She got back up off of the floor, resigning herself to the chance that he would laugh at her when she went back out. She wandered over to her drawers, pulling out a random dress as she watched the giant in the courtyard out her window. He was still sweeping as the chickens clucked around him. It was actually quite amusing watching him growl at the chickens as they got in his way. She knew he was cleaning the mess of the livestock that he had put out in the field, but she had no idea what he did after that. Normally she would watch him from her window until he managed to get the pigs out of the courtyard – always the last to go out, being such a nuisance – and then she would go to her more instructive books for the rest of the day, only vaguely aware that he had then let the chickens out.

She pulled her nightgown off and replaced it with the dress, before tying her hair back with a bandana, remembering that they had company. Letting her waves fall around loose when they had a guest would be unacceptable. She casually made her way down the corridor to the stairs, making her way back into the dining room and earning a resigned shake of her aunt's head. She clearly had not been impressed with her running around earlier. Hopefully she would not say anything. Levy smiled back and grabbed a slice of toast, earning a frown as she immediately made for the door rather than sitting down to eat.

She closed the door behind her and walked up to the giant, beginning to follow him as he swept, apparently ignoring her. If this was about before, he was being childish, and if this was his way of refusing to learn from her, well that idea was mildly amusing. She could talk away to him all day as he worked if she had to. Eventually she would get on his nerves, leading him to agreeing to learn if she would just leave him alone.

"Vkrepr?" He sighed, not looking back at her – well that was quicker than she had expected.

"Yes, Gajeel?" She returned, smiling innocently at his mass of long, black, tangled hair.

"Rkur ura oio gieth?" He grunted, likely rolling his eyes, judging by his tone.

"What was that, Gajeel? 'Rekour ura oio geeth'? Judging by the 'are you' in the middle, that was a question." She replied, a playful smirk directed at him as he dropped his shoulders.

"Rrkurr ura oio gieth." He sighed, stopping brushing to turn to look at her. "Rkur ura oio gieth? Forrowing?"

"For- Following!? Are you asking what I am doing? Or why am I following you? If you are wondering what I am doing, I am going to keep bothering you until you pay attention to me. If you are asking why I am following you, I am doing it to annoy you." She nodded, feeling pleased with herself.

"Vkrepr, e renn tir naurt krip oio." He grunted, turning his back on her again.

"You have said that to me three times now, so please will you try to explain what it means?" She pleaded, grabbing the side of his tunic.

"TI! TIR NAURT KRIP _OIO_!" He growled, rounding on her, his teeth bared, sending fear through her entire body as she fell backwards, sending the gathered chickens fleeing.

"Barbarian! Do not _DARE_ speak like that to Levy!" Gray snapped from his window, poised to jump down.

"It is ok, Gray! I think I startled him by grabbing his tunic! I do not think he meant me any harm – he was just surprised!" Levy called back, trying to look as calm as possible as she started to get back up, ignoring the throbbing pain coming from her bottom. "If he was travelling through the forests of Bosco for some time, he likely had to be constantly ready for an attack."

"He should not have threatened you! What did he say?!" Gray demanded, still crouched on his window sill.

"Gajeel, what did you say to me? Please, Gray demands to know." She begged quietly. She hoped he would just reply calmly because his emotionless exterior had already returned as if it had never left.

"No. Nort learn grom your." He replied, his struggle clear in his tone.

"Too many 'r's again, Gajeel." She smiled softly up at the giant, before turning to look back up at Gray to explain. "He says he will not learn from me. It is not a threat, but a problem I must work my own way around."

"If you say so." Gray frowned, narrowing his dark eyes at the male servant. "Come find me if he tries anything like that again."

"I will." She replied, silently refusing to promise to it.

"Srorry, Vkrepr." Gajeel sighed from behind her once Gray disappeared. "E vkurag oio."

"Did that mean you 'scared' me? So that would literally be 'I scared you', is that right?" She questioned, looking back up at him guiltily. "You did say you would teach me words if I asked."

"...Oav...? 'Scarred'?" He replied, looking slightly confused.

"Scared. One 'r' – do not '_hrirn'_, which I believe means '_growl'_." She smirked knowingly, earning another eye roll from the giant. "Scared." She repeated, pretending to jump in fear. "Scared."

"Scared. 'Vkurag' ev 'scared'." He nodded thoughtfully, turning back to his sweeping.

"Vikurrag." Levy repeated, trying to roll her 'r'.

"Gihe, unpivr. Vk-urrrag, nema 'Vkrepr'." He grinned over his shoulder at her.

"Vikreper, vikurrag." Levy growled, trying to imitate him.

"Gihe, 'vk', Vkrepr. Oio-"

"He actually talks?!"

Levy spun around; her eyes fell on Lucy standing in the open doorway, staring at them, in disbelief. Levy sighed, shaking her head to herself. How could her cousin think that he did not speak? She began laughing as she remembered what she had thought only a week earlier, before she had come out to make him apologise to Wendy. Lucy was no different. Unless you heard him speak, which was almost impossible to make him do, then you really would think that all he could do was 'grunt' – if you even managed to get _that_ much out of him.

"Yes, Lucy, he does." She smiled back, laughing again as Lucy suddenly began trying to regain her composure.


	12. Chapter 12

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

**Really sorry this is late! My internet got cut off, but this is it back on! I'm posting an additional one-shot today for anyone interested in a little extra Gajevy, NaLu and Gruvia (and Erza being a great person...and Gajeel being a nice guy)! Thank you to everyone who has reviewed/followed and favourited this! It really means a lot! And thank you so much to my wonderful BETA, _MakeItHale_! She's correcting mistakes right, left and centre for us all right now! Thank you! XD**

* * *

**Chapter Twelve**

"He actually talks?!"

Levy spun around, her eyes falling on Lucy standing in the open doorway, staring at them in disbelief. Levy sighed, shaking her head to herself. How could her cousin think that he did not speak? She began laughing as she remembered what she had thought only a week earlier before she had come out to make him apologise to Wendy. Lucy was no different. Unless you heard him speak, which was almost impossible to make him do, then you really would think that all he could do was 'grunt' – if you even managed to get _that_ much out of him.

"Yes, Lucy, he does." She smiled back, laughing as Lucy suddenly began trying to regain her composure.

"Right, well, em, you do not seem surprised...well, I guess...I guess I will...Levy?" She attempted, still stunned.

"Yes, Lucy?" She grinned, trying to stop herself from laughing – had she been like this? She hoped not.

"Mother sent me out to give him an order...Did he just laugh at something?! He made a really weird noise and it almost sounded like he was laughing...?" Lucy began, clearly bewildered.

"Yes, Lucy, 'gihe' is his laugh. Do not worry, I had the same reaction before I asked him." Levy mused, gesturing to Lucy that she could approach. "Now, what was the order?"

"Mother needs two rabbits for the dinner." Lucy nodded slowly, clearly still processing the new information.

"But we had two chickens last night? What about the goat that was slaughtered four days ago?" Levy frowned, her hands going to her hips as she became mildly annoyed at the Captain's presence. "Is goat not good enough for him?"

"I am assuming you mean Captain Loke and you should not be so rude, Levy. This order is from Mother, not the Captain, and she began preserving the goat yesterday when he arrived – she decided to only feed him the freshest meat." Lucy returned, folding her arms across her chest. "Now, if you will let me give the order, I would be very grateful."

"As you wish, Lucy." Levy replied, standing back so that she was no longer standing between her cousin and the male servant.

"Barbarian, my mother needs you to slaughter two rabbits for tonight's dinner, can you do that?" Lucy ordered, walking across the courtyard with a powerful presence.

Levy held back her laugh as a look of confusion flashed through Gajeel's eyes. How had Lucy expected him to understand her, never mind do what she told him to!? She supposed she had tried something similar the day before, but Lucy had used lots of big words with no gestures. Gajeel did not stand a chance. Levy smiled up at him, watching as Lucy stopped two meters away from him with an annoyed expression across her fine features.

"I order you to slaughter two rabbits." Lucy tried again, glaring at him as he continued to stare emotionlessly at her.

"Will you let me help him?" Levy asked, smiling sweetly at Lucy.

"You know how to speak his language?" Lucy challenged, narrowing her eyes suspiciously at her.

"No, but I could perhaps explain to him what you are ordering him to do. He is _aware_ that you are giving him an order, as shown by the fact that you are getting his full attention. Unfortunately, he does not _understand_ your order. I found I had the same problem yesterday, but Gray explained how to give him an order. Short and simple with gestures." Levy explained, still smiling at Lucy.

"Fine. Will you ask him then, Lev? Please?" Lucy sighed, her arms dropping down to her sides.

"Gajeel. You." She began, pointing to him. "Slaughter." She continued, running her finger across her throat. "Two." She smiled, holding up two fingers. "Rabbits." She finished, pointing to the stable that held the multitude of hutches filled with rabbits.

"Yres." He nodded, making Levy beam with happiness at his use of Fiorian in front of Lucy.

He was making her look very good indeed. She would have to thank him for that later, if he even understood her 'thank you's. If not, hopefully he understood how grateful she was of the things he had done to help her. She smiled at him as he turned towards the stable, followed by Lucy as she went to instruct which two. Levy waited outside for the squealing to begin, wondering how Lucy could cope. Moments later, Lucy emerged, immediately followed by Gajeel who was dangling two dead rabbits by their ears. They had not even made a sound as he had caught and killed them. He was certainly an adept hunter.

"Well, he is certainly useful." Lucy smiled happily, taking her by the arm. "Does he understand to take them to the kitchen now?"

"I could..." She began, turning to look for him, only just catching him disappearing out of the gate. "I believe he is already on his way. I suppose he had to do that with the goats and the chickens, so he would likely have been more confused had you told him not to."

"How do you know that he is not just running away?" Lucy returned, frowning in the direction of the gate.

"Because, to have survived in the wild for longer than your brother has been alive, he would have to be able to read the land. Any fool would realise they could not escape through the open fields." She nodded, trying to act as if she knew absolutely everything.

"Well, Gray would know something like that!" Lucy laughed, swinging her hip into Levy as they walked towards the front door.

"Yo! Luce! Lev! Am I early?!"

They both turned, the sight of a grinning Natsu greeting their brown eyes. Lucy sighed next to her, instantly reminding Levy of the Captain's presence at their home once more. She shook her head and turned to move back into the house, apparently not ready to face the task of handling both Captain Loke and Natsu again yet. Gray had challenged Natsu to a sparring match the night before, so Lucy could not say she had not been warned.

"No, Natsu, Gray is just finishing his breakfast. I am sure the two of you can begin warming up before the Captain comes out to join you." Lucy replied, opening the door and pulling Levy inside.

Levy took her seat at the table, remembering her toast that still lay on the cobbles outside from her fall. The chickens would definitely have it almost finished by now. She reached across and grabbed another piece, earning a reprimanding look from her aunt as she began eating. She looked back at her toast, wondering what she was in trouble for. It was perfectly normal for them to have more than one slice.

"Levy...You may wish to go bathe." Lucy nudged quietly, glancing away from her with a slight blush.

Levy looked at Lucy questioningly, wondering why she would suddenly make such a suggestion. She had bathed three nights ago and they had been told that the warm weather meant a slight water shortage. She was not supposed to bathe _fully_ again for another day. She turned her eyes to look herself over, finding nothing amiss. She went to bite into her toast again, finding herself pausing as she noticed her hands. She laid the toast down on the table, before turning her hands palm up to inspect them.

They were filthy.

She slowly turned her head, gently pulling on the side of her dress. The back was the same dusty, brown colour as her hands. Her face flushed as she suddenly remembered losing her balance after Gajeel baring his teeth at her. She smiled apologetically at her aunt, before glaring at a grinning Natsu who was clearly trying not to laugh. She got up from the table, nodding to the Captain as he appeared from the men's wing, before turning to hurry out of the dining room to her bedroom.

She slammed her bedroom door shut and stalked over to her drawers, hauling a clean dress out before storming into her and Lucy's shared bathroom that lay between their rooms. She sighed as she laid the dress by the side of the bath, turning the taps to allow the water to pour into the bath. She cringed at the embarrassment of everyone seeing her like that. She began to chew her lip as she wondered if they knew why she had been in that state, before smiling to herself at the memory of him apologising, only for her to successfully teach him a new word.

He was already learning, whether he liked it or not.

She took a large, cream, fluffy bath towel from the shelf by her head, laying it down next to her dress for when she finished. Levy sighed happily to herself as she slipped her dress off of her shoulders, letting it fall to the floor around her feet. She slid her panties down her pale legs before delicately stepping out of them. She twirled her fingers in the water, testing the temperature before turning off the taps and slipping into the water. The water only came halfway up her stomach, but she would not be greedy. She lay back, almost laying flat along the bottom of the bath, her head resting on the white porcelain. She pulled her bandana out of her hair and dropped it over the side of the bath before lowering her head under the water, completely immersing herself.

Levy lay there for a moment, enjoying the warm water lapping over her entire body. She internally sighed, feeling calm and relaxed as she began to slowly raise herself again. She lifted the soap and started lathering it in her hands before running it over her skin. Levy took a moment to revel in the warm water and smiled; bathing was always so relaxing and being clean felt so wonderful. She hummed as she suddenly remembered Gajeel's matted hair; she wondered how often he bathed, if he bathed at all.

She heard a shout come from the courtyard and sighed. What were they doing now? She shook her head, deciding to leave them to their games and enjoy her bath before the water became cold. She began to work the soap into her hair, massaging her scalp. Maybe she should lend Gajeel a brush? Would it be possible to detangle that mass? Or would it just have to be cut off? Perhaps his long hair meant something in his culture? It was certainly possible.

Another shout rose up from the courtyard, snapping her back to the present. What were they doing out there? She slipped back under the water, annoyed that they were interrupting her bath. She would not be allowed another for four days and they were cutting it short. She rinsed her hair, making sure to remove all of the soap, before coming back up for air. She ran her hands over her body, trying to rid it of soap residue. She sighed again as she stood up, pulling the plug out as she climbed out of the bath, wrapping her towel around her.

She walked over to the window, making sure that she was completely covered, before leaning out to see what was going on. She shook her head as she watched Gray leap for Natsu, their sparring apparently already begun. How long had she been in the bath? She smiled as Natsu dodged and pushed an already wet Gray into the fountain. Another shout erupted as Gray hauled himself out of the water, removing his sodden clothes while complaining that they were slowing him down. Lucy and the Captain watched from a safe distance, standing below Lucy's bedroom window. From her current position, she could see Gajeel watching with great curiosity from the chickens' stable. They had clearly gotten him to put the chickens away for them to spar.

Levy smiled and turned back towards the now empty bath. She quickly dried herself so that she could go down to join them.


	13. Chapter 13

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

**Hey! Thank you to everyone reading/reviewing/favouriting/following this! Thank you so much to MakeItHale! She is _flying_ through these chapters for you! Hope you enjoy this latest chapter!**

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**Chapter Thirteen**

Levy laughed as Gray threw Natsu into the fountain, returning the favour for being dunked twice, not to mention falling in himself when the Captain had called out to him. Regarding successful hits, Gray was winning, but as for underhanded tactics, Natsu was definitely winning. Lucy had filled Levy in the moment that she joined her and the Captain, briefly asking if she had enjoyed her bath. It was not long after Natsu stripping off his wet clothes that the Captain decided to end the match, telling them to rest before they had a rematch.

Levy sighed with relief as Gray calmly agreed to a ceasefire, grabbing Natsu by the hair and dragging him over to them. She could feel someone watching her as she laughed at the arguing teens, making her feel slightly self-conscious. She raised a hand to her wet hair, attempting to smooth it slyly before directing a smile at the Captain, earning an elegant bow of his head in return, along with a knowing smirk. What was he thinking?

"Why do I not show you what I am capable of then?" The Captain suggested loudly, puffing his chest out. "Shall we call the barbarian out?!"

"Captain, I believe that would be a really bad idea!" Levy burst out, gaining everyone's attention as the group instantly fell silent. "We would not want to encourage him to challenge us. Gray leaves for the Barracks soon and my Uncle is about to return to the Border, so you see, it will just be us women and children left at home with him."

"Levy, my dear flower, you really do not need to worry about that – I will make sure he never questions that us civilised people are far superior to his barbaric ones." The Captain smirked, bowing to her.

"He challenged Levy this morning and gave her quite the fright, so it is understandable that she would not agree with you." Gray explained, looking over at her with genuine concern.

"If that is true, he deserves to be put in his place!" The Captain exclaimed in horror, rushing to her side. "Are you alright? Did the barbarian hurt you at all?!"

"No, no! Gajeel did not mean to frighten me! It was just an automatic reaction! He did not mean to threaten me! He was very apologetic!" Levy defended desperately, trying to protect him from a whipping, all because of her foolishness.

"The barbarian was 'very apologetic'? I wish to see this!" Captain Loke demanded, waving over to Gajeel to bring him over to their little gathering.

Levy bit the inside of her lip as she watched the giant open the stable door, letting himself out before locking the chickens inside. He walked calmly across the courtyard towards them, his expression completely emotionless. What was he thinking? Did he have any idea what he was being called over for? He did not look all that threatening, or even threatened, as he got closer. Had her aunt been completely wrong about what had kept him up all night? Maybe she should smile at him to let him know that everything was alright? _Was_ everything alright?

"Barbarian! I want you to apologise to this delicate flower for this morning! How dare you threaten her!" The Captain exclaimed, glaring angrily at Gajeel as he stood there completely emotionless. "I thought you said he was 'very apologetic'!? He seems completely indifferent at the fact that he hurt you!"

"No, Captain! He did not _hurt_ me! He did not even mean to threaten me, never mind _hurt_ me! He _scared_ me, not _hurt_ me! He is not responding to your order because he did not understand it! He is not completely indifferent!" Levy explained, trying not to lose her temper with the man that called himself a Captain.

"'Hurt'?" Gajeel grunted, looking at her for help, his face still emotionless, but Levy could see the confusion swimming amongst his beautiful rubies.

"Hurt. Ow. Pain. Sore." She began, pulling a face that suggested the idea of her being in pain. "Understand?"

"Yres." He nodded, still emotionless as Levy watched the gears turning in his head behind his mesmerising eyes.

"The Captain." She stated, pointing at Captain Loke. "Orders you." She continued, turning her finger towards Gajeel. "To apologise to me." She smiled apologetically, pointing at herself. "I said you did not hurt me." She finished slowly, watching him nod his understanding.

"Srorry." He grunted, his face remaining completely emotionless.

"Well that did not seem very sorry! I will make him give you a better apology!" The Captain snapped, raising his fists threateningly.

"No, he apologised earlier! He does not understand why you are making him do it again! He barely speaks and you are making him do it in front of everyone! He sounded much more sincere this morning!" Levy pleaded, stepping between the giant and the Captain.

"My darling mountain flower, I will have to ask you to step to the side." The Captain politely ordered, rolling his shoulders as he held his fists up, earning a growl from Gajeel.

"Vkrepr." He grunted, his demand clear.

"What did he just say?" Gray asked, looking between Levy and Gajeel.

"That is what he calls me – he is asking me to move out of the way since the Captain is acting very threateningly." Levy explained, quickly turning to face Gajeel, stepping closer to him. "Ti, Gajeel, ti! Please!? E tir nema! Gajeel?!"

"Vkrepr...?" Gajeel uttered, completely stunned as he stared down at her. "Oio...?"

"Please do not accept his challenge! You already apologised! _I_ know you meant it!" She pleaded, taking another step towards him.

"Vkrepr!" Gajeel exclaimed, grabbing her and shoving her to the side, just in time to block the Captain's punch.

Levy watched in horror from Lucy's arms as the Captain threw punch after punch at the male servant, Gajeel blocking them as he was slowly pushed backwards. Levy could see where the Captain was taking him, could see where Gajeel would end up. Why was he not fighting back?! The Captain was going to trick him to get a punch in if he did not retaliate! She watched as Gajeel suddenly swerved, the Captain almost losing his balance at his fist met with fresh air. She heard a chuckle escape Gajeel, earning a growl of frustration from the Captain. Gajeel's studs were likely hurting the Captain's knuckles every time Gajeel blocked – how much longer could he continue?

Gajeel suddenly leapt up, grabbing the beam that ran along the floor level on the outside of the men's wing, swinging his bare foot out as the Captain rushed towards him. Gajeel's foot made contact with the Captain's chest, catching him off guard. The Captain went flying backwards, falling just short of the fountain. Gajeel lazily dropped back down from the beam and turned to pick up the pitchfork. Levy felt panic start to rise inside her, watching in horror as she imagined Gajeel running it through the Captain.

Gajeel walked into the goats' stable as if nothing had happened, leaving the door open as he began to clean.

"Why you-"

"I believe Gajeel just won that," Gray interrupted, stopping Captain Loke, "and he did not even try. He used your own momentum against you as you were charging him; all he did was lift his leg. If he had actually kicked you, you would have likely ended up in the fountain." Gray explained, a note of amusement in his voice. "I believe he just did my cousin proud – she asked him not to accept your challenge and he did not. Congratulations, Levy, that was your win. You have more sway with a barbarian than the Captain does."

"Yeah, what did you say to him?!" Natsu cheered, slapping her on the shoulder.

"Em...I...I used really bad grammar and the few words that I know to try to get him to understand..." She replied sheepishly, feeling her cheeks begin to heat.

"He was obviously impressed that you tried so hard, Levy!" Lucy beamed, hugging her tightly in excitement from behind. "He actually listened to you! I cannot believe it! You must tell us what you conveyed to him!"

"'No, Gajeel, no'? 'Please' in Fiorian, then 'I not like' in his language and said his name again..." She replied shyly, looking down at the ground.

"You are pretty good with him – if you keep up his teaching, the two of you will be able to communicate in each other's languages fluently by the time your uncle returns again from the Border." Captain Loke smiled, an impressed tone to his voice as he accepted Gray's explanation. "You were clearly the right person to give the task."

"Th-Thank you, Captain." She stammered, knowing her cheeks were likely an impressive crimson. "How-How are your hands? Your knuckles kept hitting his studs? You must be in a lot of pain!?"

"Thank you for your concern, my delicate flower, but they are only slightly bruised – I knew he would block and, having met his studs before, knew to pull my punches." The Captain laughed, smiling brightly down at her. "I was more interested in his reaction than actually fighting him. I wanted to find out if being a servant with your family had changed him. Your family is friendly to everyone and this barbarian is a little rough around the edges. I would not have thought he would be good 'servant material'. Today, Levy my dear, you have proved me wrong. His first instinct was to get you out of the way and his second was to follow your order."

"He has only known her for a just over a week, so I believe she deserves more credit than you have given her!" Lucy grinned, squeezing Levy teasingly.

"I-I was just continuing from the start that Wendy had made! It was Wendy that asked me to help her and I just happened to pick up a few words...Wendy deserves a lot more credit than me – she is nine years old and can get him to do whatever she wants using a lot of pointing." Levy explained, waving her hands around, her arms still held in place by Lucy's hug.

"Yes, but he has pet names for _both_ of you! He took a week to come up with one for Wendy and how long for you?" Lucy returned, blowing in her ear to make her squirm.

"It still took him a week! He only gave me it yesterday! I fell, and he was angry at me, and he just suddenly called me 'Vikreper'...and I know I cannot say it right..." She groaned, sighing in defeat as she still failed to make the correct sound.

"You fell?! Why was he angry with you?! Levy!" Lucy rushed in horror, spinning her around to look at her.

"I was trying to reach a book...and I ended up standing on a crate...It broke and I fell...Gajeel caught me though!? He was really angry that I had not come to get him...'Vikreper' is something to do with me being short..." She explained sheepishly, smiling apologetically at Lucy.

"Why did you not say anything?!" Lucy demanded, the three men around them watching Levy intently.

"You told me that Captain Loke was here and I completely forgot about even being at the bookshop...Gajeel actually still has the book that I bought to teach him Fiorian." She replied, wanting to bury her face in something as Lucy held back her laugh, knowing the others were likely in the same state.

"I am very sorry to have distracted you, my young mountain flower." The Captain teased, bowing to her. "He is certainly proving to be a very useful servant, at least to you. Perhaps he knows more than he says?"

"What do you mean by that, Captain?" Lucy inquired, trying to hide her confusion behind a curious smile.

"You will find out soon, my precious desert flower." He chimed, a knowing smirk across his lips. "I believe you will find out when your father returns from his next trip to the Border."


	14. Chapter 14

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

**Hello! Thank you to everyone who's reading/reviewing/favouriting/following this! Hope you enjoy this chapter (and it's on time! Yay!)**

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Levy stretched, yawning, as she sat up from her bed. She could still see Gajeel's awkward smile as he called up to her after putting his brush away. He had called 'night, Vkrepr' to her again, but this time he had actually looked back at her as he had waved, seeming unbelievably shy in doing so. He was certainly not a barbarian, of that she was sure. He was just a misunderstood boy that had been taken from his home, caged and chained, only to be thrown into a strange world that he did not understand, being forced to follow the orders of complete strangers who did not even speak to him. Perhaps he was right in thinking he was a slave? What exactly was the difference?

She rolled out of her bed, quickly changing before leaning out of her window, looking for the giant. He was in his usual place: the stable directly under Gray's bedroom window. She had not slept in and she did not believe she was awake early. Whatever had disrupted his sleep the night before obviously had not bothered him last night. Maybe he had been too tired to let it? She waved down at him as he emerged, frightening the chickens back from the door as a few of them moved to escape. He seemed to nod at her before moving along to see to the rabbits.

Turning away from the window, Levy happily made her way over to her door and escaped into the corridor. She was greeted by a cheery Lucy coming out of her own room, a distinct soap smell radiating from her skin. They practically skipped along the corridor, chatting happily about their plans for the day. Gray was heading into town to the Barracks again, so Lucy was going to go with him and spend the day with Erza, planning to return after lunch with Gray. Captain Loke was going to head to the Barracks with them, having plans of his own that he must carry out; however he apparently was not returning to their home for some time.

They claimed their seats at the dining table, earning a sigh from Levy's uncle, clearly feeling it was too early for such enthusiasm. The night before had been another late one, everyone staying at the table until long after Natsu had left. Levy had been extremely surprised to find Gajeel still wandering around when she had looked out her window, but his duties _had_ been interrupted by the sparring. Hopefully she could get him to focus more on learning languages today, rather than fighting techniques.

"Levy, are you daydreaming again?"

"Hm, what?" Levy jumped, turning her head to see Gray emerge from the men's wing.

"I was saying good morning, but you did not respond." He smirked, walking over to the table. "Thinking about Gajeel's lesson?"

"Yes...Hopefully he has not hidden the book so that I cannot use it." She sighed, earning a quiet chuckle from her cousin as he took his seat next to her.

"Do you think he will agree to learn from you today?" He asked, reaching for a slice of toast.

"I can only hope!" She laughed, shaking her head at his stubbornness. "He is adamant, but he is already learning from me, so I am _technically_ winning. Today I hope to find out _why_ he refuses to learn from me."

"That sounds like a good idea and, whether you do or not, I shall specifically come out to order him to." Her uncle added, a stern tone to his voice as it came through the morning paper.

"Uncle, I would prefer to teach him of his own free will – he will learn much better that way." Levy replied politely, earning a grunt of acceptance from the newspaper. "I shall go begin now, if that is alright with everyone." She continued, earning amused smiles from both Gray and Lucy as she stood up.

"Ah, Levy, before you go, I just bought some apples in town. I believe you should at least have one of them – you have not had fruit in some time." Her aunt lectured, appearing in through the front door. "I got a good price for the eggs this morning, so I decided to get us a little luxury."

"Darling, apples do not _have_ to be a luxury." Levy's uncle sighed, shaking his head at his wife as he lowered the newspaper. "We have come a long way since the days of me being an insignificant foot soldier."

Levy grabbed an apple, smiling at her aunt as she began to pretend to be insulted. She had certainly become part of a very interesting family after her father had died, there was no denying it. She slipped out through the open front door and pulled it closed, a grunt sounding from directly behind her. She spun around, jumping slightly as she realised Gajeel was standing only a foot away from her, showing her the brush.

"What?" She asked, running her eyes over the brush and finding nothing wrong with it.

"Oio ura et rka ruo." He returned, looking at her expectantly.

"You are...'et' was the word I asked you about in the bookshop...and I do not recognise the other two." She frowned, returning his gaze.

"'Et'." He repeated, pointing at the door. "Ior." He continued, gesturing around them.

"...Inside...? And outside...?" She tried, watching him thinking.

"Ti." He grunted, frowning slightly.

"Ok, so I am guessing that was a good guess...'in' and 'out'?" She replied hopefully, pretending to step in through an imaginary door before pretending to step back out again, earning a nod from him.

"You are in...Can you repeat, please?" She asked, making her eyes as big as possible.

"'You are in'." He sighed, looking away from her.

"Haha, no, no! I meant could you repeat what you had said!" She laughed, trying to restrain herself as he clearly began to huff at her laughing at him. "Sorry, that was mean of me to laugh...but thank you for repeating me so perfectly – you did not add any 'r's, so I am very impressed."

"Oio ura et rka ruo." He repeated slowly, looking at her out the corner of his eye as he kept sulking.

"You are in..." She replayed his actions in her head, trying to work out what the last two could mean. "I am in the way! I am so sorry! I will move!" She yelped, jumping out of the way, making him laugh as he began to sweep again. "I will wait at the fountain for you to finish..."

"Ti." He grunted back. "E taag ri pixa rka utepunv."

"Sorry, I did not understand that." Levy smiled innocently, hoping he would try to translate.

"Utepunv." He sighed, gesturing to the stables. "Pixa." He grunted, pointing to the gate.

"Something to do with hav- You still have to put the animals out? But you did not say 'out'...What is 'pixah'?" She babbled, rubbing her neck awkwardly. "I really am normally better than this at languages, but I usually use books."

"Pix-aa. Pixa." He repeated, grabbing hold of her sides and lifting her, catching her by surprise, barely allowing her to struggle before he set her down again a few inches from where she had been. "Pixa."

"Pixa. Pixa? Lift? But you would not lift all the- You need to move the animals. Right, normal routine, of course. How about I help you?" She smiled, gaining a suspicious look from him. "Every time we go to move the next animal, you will tell me what they are in your language. Understand?"

"Virr ik, oav." He sighed, continuing to brush, as she made her way over to the fountain to wait patiently for him to finish.

She sat on the warm stone to watch as he made his way up the courtyard, using his long, muscular arms to clear a wide strip, stopping by her feet before turning back to the house end of the courtyard. Gajeel began sweeping again, grabbing what he had left by her feet with the brush as he reached the fountain, before continuing to the far end. He looped back again, doing the final leg before gathering the sweepings into the pile of waste outside the gate to be dumped on the fields when needed. Gajeel soon walked back up to her, dropping down onto the stone ledge next to her. He pushed back the long black strands of hair that had fallen forward over his strangely handsome features, their sharpness unknown to native Fiorians.

"Tired?" She asked, pretending to flop from exhaustion, earning a sharp-toothed grin and a shake of his head in return. "Hungry?" She ventured, rubbing her stomach and looking at the apple in her hand longingly.

"Virr ik." He shrugged, giving her a small smile. "E gi tir har kag pokk."

"I wish I understood that, but I have a feeling that was not 'no'." She replied sadly, staring at her apple, suddenly breaking into a grin. "Would you like my apple?! My aunt would never have to know!" She burst out, holding the apple up to him.

"Ura oio vareiovno ikkareth pa rkur urrna?" He frowned after a moment, looking at her suspiciously.

"What?" She gaped, completely confused at the rush of growls, hisses and grunts he had thrown at her.

"Urrna." He sighed, pointing at the apple, then at himself. "Kir pa? Ura oio vareiovno ikkareth pa rkur urrna?"

"'Urrna' ev 'apple'...'Kir pa' ev 'for me'..." She mumbled quietly to herself, aware of him staring at her. "Oav, urrna ev kir oio."

Gajeel stared at her in utter disbelief. She grinned, resisting the urge to throw her arms around him as she rejoiced, finally having said a full sentence in his language. Judging by his expression she had actually gotten it right. She had successfully said 'Yes, apple is for you'. This was going to be easier than she thought! She placed the apple in his hand, watching as he stared at it for a moment, before finally slowly raising it to his mouth, watching her carefully as he did. She smiled expectantly at him, her expression brightening as his sharp teeth encircled a large section of apple. He seemed to blush slightly as his jaws sliced towards each other, their teeth cutting through the apple as if it did not even exist. He looked away from her, fidgeting slightly under her gaze as he chewed.

He took another bite and handed it back, watching her out the corner of his eye. She looked at the half apple in her hand, unsure of what he expected her to do. If she asked him, he might take offence. There had to be _some_ reason for him eating _half_ the apple. Was he giving her back the other half as a 'thank you'? It would make sense since he had nothing else to give her in return. She lifted the apple up to her lips, looking back at him as his one visible eye went wide before shooting away from her. Was she supposed to eat it? He did not like wasting anything so he would not expect her to throw it away. She bit into it. His head snapped around to look at her. There was a strange expression in his eyes and a smirk across his lips.

What had she just done? He was clearly impressed – if that was the right word – that she had bitten into the apple. She finished the skin and flesh, leaving herself staring at the half core of the apple. Normally she would throw it away, but Gajeel did not like waste...and he had given her back half the apple as a thank you, right? It would be rude to not eat it. She frowned at it, battling between her dislike of the hard, unsweet core and her wish to not insult the male waiting on her to finish. He nudged her arm lightly, bring her attention to him. He opened his mouth wide and showed her all his unbelievably sharp teeth. He then curtly nodded his head once at her as he watched her almost lazily.

"Oio?" She mumbled, looking away from him shyly before getting onto her knees on the side of the fountain. She brought her hazel eyes back to look into the black slits that cut through perfect ruby and dropped the half apple core into his mouth.

His jaws snapped shut on it, encasing it in darkness as he began to chew.

"Repa ri pixa rka utepunv, Vkrepr." He grinned at her, pulling her up with him as he rose from the edge of the fountain.


	15. Chapter 15

**AN: Hiro Mashima owns Fairy Tail and does a wonderful job of writing it!**

**Surprise! This is the update I'd planned to surprise you with yesterday, but I wasn't anywhere near my laptop :P I have now seen Antman though! ^_^ Thank you to everyone reading/reviewing/following/favouriting this! It really means a lot to see so many of you enjoying this! ****I'm glad you loved the last chapter as much as I did! It's one of my favourites! ^_^****If you want, I can upload a 'book' with Gajeel's language with the next update? If you want, send me some words (in our language) and I'll make sure they're in it ^_^**

**Thank you again, MakeItHale, for BETAing this! You're doing amazingly and thank you for keeping me going! I'd better hurry up or you'll catch up! XD**

**(**_Und_ "no name", _danke! Mein Deutsch is sehr rostig, aber ich war sehr __glücklich__, wenn ich deine Rezension gesehen habe_.**)**

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**Ah, and a bit of vocab!**

**billy - male goat**

**"nema" - Gajeel's word for "like"**

**"oav" - Gajeel's word for "yes"**

**Hope you enjoy this! ^_^ **

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**Chapter Fifteen**

Levy stood at the side of the fountain, waiting as Gajeel stood by the stable door which currently hid the goats. She knew his word for goats and he knew hers. There was no talking, just silence. He had positioned her, smirking, before turning towards the stable. He was now standing by the door, clearly trying not to laugh. What _exactly_ was he about to do? They were supposed to be moving them out to their field, so if he needed her _here_, how did he normally do it? There was only one of him? She was sure he had not looked like he needed help when she had watched him in the past?

He opened the stable door.

The goats and their kids flooded out of the stable, all eighteen of them, all straight towards her. She squeaked and leapt up onto the edge of the fountain, glaring at Gajeel as he burst into a fit of laughter at her. He was not laughing long. She looked down at the goats just in time to see one of the three billies decide to shove her out of the way. She started to flail around with her arms as she lost her balance. The goats ignored her as they moved in to drink, only jumping back as the water suddenly leapt at them resulting in soaking them. Levy sat up, breathless, in the fountain, staring back at Gajeel in shock as he looked on in sheer horror.

Seconds later he was pulling her out of the water; he started running his hands over her to check her for any harm, giving her a strange sense of déjà vu. She pushed him back, beginning to laugh as she looked down at herself. Two baths in two days – she was doing well. She shook her head violently, sending spray everywhere and earning a snort of amusement from Gajeel. She grinned up at him and pushed him again before peeling her dress off of her skin. She released it, only for it to stick to her once more. Well, the goats were out now, so it would just have to dry in the sun.

"Shall we?" She laughed, gesturing to the goats.

"Oio ura unn rar." He grinned, flicking her hair.

"I am what?" She giggled, swatting his hand away.

"Unn rar!" He smirked, flashing his teeth, as he gestured to her whole body.

"Yes, Gajeel, I am all wet!" She sighed, shaking her head with a happy smile.

"'Unn rar' ev 'arr wet'?" He asked, still smirking at her.

"I believe so. Now can we get these goats out? I might dry faster if I am moving around." She puffed, fighting back her smile.

He rolled his eyes at her, still smiling at her, but the simple action told her all she needed to know – he had not understood a word of that. He began herding them towards the gate, waving his arms and growling at them. She tried to follow his example, only to have one of the kids turn to argue with her. She heard a laugh escape Gajeel and puffed her cheeks out in annoyance, quickly leaning down to shove the protesting kid in the direction of the gate. Less than ten minutes later, they were leaning against the fence watching the goats pulling at grass. Levy sighed happily, pleased with their work.

"Kuxa kot?" Gajeel grinned, ruffling her drying hair.

"Kuxa kot?" She repeated, earning a smirk from him as she looked up at him expectantly.

"Kuxa kot..." He hummed, looking around them before suddenly awkwardly jumping around in forced excitement. "Kuxa kot?"

"Yeah...I had fun." She smirked, holding back her laugh at his attempt to act. "What do we do next?"

"Dru next?" He repeated, making her laugh with his very confused expression. How had she ever thought he was completely unreadable and emotionless?!

"Come on!" She grinned, grabbing his wrist and pulling him towards the gate into the courtyard at a run.

"Gihe!" He laughed out, following after her with a huge grin of his own.

She let go of him as they piled into the courtyard, Gajeel regaining his composure as he started to move away from her, heading towards the stable that held the sheep. This would certainly be interesting. She watched as he unbolted the door, nerves building as she realised she was standing in the way of the gate. Would they come straight at her? Was Gajeel just planning to have a laugh at her expense again? Would he? Well, he certainly was not holding back. He threw the door open, watching as the sheep calmly trotted out, straight to the fountain. Levy was beginning to notice a pattern.

"Vkrepr! Vkaar!" He grinned, pointing to the sheep.

"Vikaar?" She called back, knowing she had the sound wrong before he even shook his head at her in amusement. "'Vikaar' ev 'sheep'."

"Zkeep?" He returned, frowning as he heard himself say it. "Zheep? Z-"

"Sheep. It is a 'sh' sound – I do not think you have it, like we do not have 'vik'...you know what I mean." She sighed, resisting the urge to pout.

"Shreep." He offered, grinning as she began to smile back at him again. "Shreep!"

"Hehe, no, sheep! There is no 'r'." She giggled, watching him begin to huff, before a smirk flashed onto his lips, a glint appearing in his eyes.

"Hrirn! Pixa!" He began shouting, waving his arms at the sheep.

Levy leapt out the way as they began to run towards her, frowning at him before trying to funnel them through the open gate. They slowed down to a trot as they passed her, seemingly more nervous about the area outside the courtyard than the giant walking silently behind them. A low rumble began, dragging Levy's attention to the sky as she searched for a thunder cloud. Brilliant blue skies greeted her. She looked back at Gajeel, about to ask him if he could hear thunder, only to find him baring his teeth threateningly at the sheep.

Levy instantly grasped where the rumble was coming from.

She watched as the sheep began to shuffle nervously, the ones at the back that were still inside the gate deciding to push forward to escape. The flock began gaining momentum, almost like a droplet beginning to glide down a windowpane. She looked up in awe at Gajeel as he drove them forward, sidestepping whenever he needed them to turn. Levy could feel his growl reverberating through every bone in her body. This was more of a threat than anything he had thrown at her before. This was more than just a threat. This was a predator picking out his prey, testing for the weakest of the flock. Not just _threatening_ them, but _telling_ them that one of them would not make it through this.

He got the sheep into the field and shut the gate on them before turning to smile at her with no sign of his previous intent to kill. He was almost like a completely different person. Which was the real Gajeel? The kind one that had been laughing with her minutes before? Or the blood-thirsty predator that had just forced the sheep to bend to his will? Was everything just an act to catch her off guard? No. He had been genuinely concerned when she had fallen into the fountain, more concerned than when she had fallen in the bookshop. When she had emerged from the water, it had actually seemed like he had cared about her, rather than just about doing his duty.

What had changed?

"That was terrifying." She admitted quietly, looking nervously up at him.

"Rkur?! Vkrepr?!" He replied, a clear note of worry in his tone. He suddenly walked up to her and searched her hazel eyes, his own wide.

"'Terrifying' nema 'scared'." She explained awkwardly, looking away from his gaze.

"I scared you?" He grunted, turning her head to face him with one rough hand on her cheek.

"...Oav...?" She sighed, trying to shrink back into herself in embarrassment.

"Sorry, Vkrepr – I not mean to!" He replied, looking back at her, regret shining in his eyes.

"I did not mean to." She smiled back shyly, pushing him.

"I did not mean to, Vkrepr." He sighed, moving his hand to ruffle her hair again with a soft smile.

"I know, Gajeel." She giggled, instantly turning and running back to the courtyard to the sound of Gajeel's shouts of objection.

She stopped just inside the gate, pressing herself against the wall to hide from him. She held her breath as she heard him approach, trying not to give herself away. Levy waited silently, wondering why she could no longer hear him. Did he know she was there? Was he waiting just outside the gate to jump at her when she decided to look for him? No, how would he know this game? She began tapping her finger against her leg impatiently, waiting for him. What was keeping him? She felt something drop against her neck and sighed, turning to look at the top of the wall to see what bird had taken interest in her now.

"Kao, Vkrepr." Gajeel grinned down at her, another tiny piece of stone from the wall in his hand held over her as he dangled his legs over the edge.

"Gajeel! How did you get up there?!" She exclaimed, staring up at him in utter disbelief, suddenly remembering how easily he had hung from the wooden beam the day before. "You climbed up there...If you could do that, why have you not just left?"

"Vkrepr?" He grunted questioningly, dropping himself down to land, crouched, on the balls of his bare feet silently.

"Why do you stay?" She asked, pointing at him before gesturing around her, then up at the wall, unsure of how to explain her question.

"Not explain, Vkrepr. No, not to you." He growled in frustration, sighing heavily before standing up to move over to the pigs' stable, gesturing to her to follow. "Rehv. Kot." He grinned, unbolting the door.

"Rev? Pigs." She replied, remembering 'kot' from earlier as 'fun'.

"Rehv." He grunted, swinging the door open and stepping out the way of the stampede.

Levy watched on in horror as the three loose pigs scattered across the courtyard, glancing into the stable to see the two caged ones still lying calmly with their piglets in their individual pens. She turned her head just in time to see Gajeel drive one to the gate, slamming it shut behind him then continuing to drive it to the field nearest the gate. He chased it in, slamming the field gate closed behind it before jogging back to the courtyard gate.

"Kot?" She grinned, opening the gate for him.

"Oav." He smirked back, before going back on the chase for his next victim.

Half an hour later, the two dropped onto the edge of the fountain, Gajeel slicking back those pesky strands that had fallen forward again. She could see the perspiration gathering on his tanned skin and the happy but tired, gentle smile on his thin lips. He was leaning back on his hands, his eyes closed as the warm afternoon breeze drifted past them. She glanced at her shoulders, suddenly realising how long they had been outside. She sighed in relief as she remembered she had chosen a dress with short sleeves that would cover them, just as a precaution in case she lost track of time. It had certainly been a good decision.

"Ready to learn some Fiorian?" She whispered, closing her eyes as she enjoyed the sunshine.

"...Oav." He replied quietly, surprising her slightly.

"Want me to help you again tomorrow?" She mumbled softly, feeling his gaze turn to her.

"...Oav." He muttered, Levy feeling him shift slightly next to her.

"Is that just so you can laugh at me again? 'Laugh', 'gihe'." She smirked, opening an eye to glance at him.

"Ti." He smirked back. "Kupeno."

"Kupeno?" She repeated, turning her head to look at him.

"Better, Vkrepr." He grinned, jumping up before she could swat him, quickly disappearing into his stable before reappearing with the farming book. "Repa?"

"You will have to explain 'repa' too." She laughed, taking the offered book.

"Thrank you, Vkrepr, for herp." He smiled awkwardly, dropping down next to her again.

"You are very welcome, Gajeel." She grinned, elbowing him teasingly. "I promise I will keep helping you, ok?"

"Thrank you."


	16. Chapter 16

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

**Thank you so much! _MakeItHale _and I _loved_ reading through your reviews! We really do appreciate them! XD Thank you to everyone reading/reviewing/favouriting/following this story! XD**

**Gajeel isn't speaking Dutch, promise! The bit I wrote in German for the last update was because a wonderful person left a review with some German! German is my second language and I have barely spoken any in the last four years, so I was very happy and excited! ^_^ On the note of languages, today I'm posting '****Rovr u nerrna viparketh et rka nuthouha ik Gajiru' which is a 'cultural journal and dictionary of words and phrases'! The title translates to '****Just a little something in Gajeel's language'! Anyone not reading this will think I've lost my marbles when they see the title! XD I'd advise reading this update first...I accidentally put in something that you only just find out in this update!**

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**For this chapter onwards, you will need to remember something:**

**Fiorian: **written normally

**Gajeel's language: **_sentences __written in italics_ (at least until we get to words that Levy doesn't know! The two of them are very much still learning! XD )

**Oh, and 'sow' is a female pig! ^_^**

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**Chapter Sixteen**

Levy yawned, poking her egg with a sausage. She had watched Gajeel slaughter the pig two days earlier and she still did not have the stomach to eat the rewards. He had warned her that she would not want to watch, but she had been stubborn. She had explained to him that she had been helping him for the last two months and she wanted to see what happened next. She was going to see what he did to them when it was time to eat one whether he liked it or not. He had opened the stable door to release them and then pointed to the one they wanted. She had managed to chase the large piglets back in, leaving the full-grown pigs to him. He soon had them in, only leaving the largest young sow loose.

He had jumped it and wrestled it to the ground with barely any effort. Gajeel then kept it pinned down while she tied a piece of rope around its neck. He dragged the squealing pig to the gate before turning to look down at her, a very obvious concerned look in his eyes. They had ended up arguing for a full ten minutes until he just rolled his eyes at her, before dragging the pig out the gate and around the outside of the girl's wing towards the back door. He actually tried to shut the door on her, but she just pushed it open and stood next to him expectantly.

She still wished she had listened to him.

"Are you actually going to eat that?" Lucy asked, eyeing her with amusement.

"I do not think I can...Do you think Aunt will notice if I go feed it to Gajeel?" She sighed, dropping her fork, the clatter echoing through the empty dining room.

"Only if she caught you taking it away from the table – she will catch you feeding him one of these days." Lucy retorted, frowning at her.

"She does not feed him enough. He never stops moving and she feeds him two small bowls of cold porridge a day! If I did not feed him, he would have collapsed from exhaustion by now!" Levy exclaimed, trying not to take out her annoyance at her aunt on her best friend. "I should probably go out there now...I could not face him yesterday because of what happened. I know he will go 'I told you so' the second that he sees me...He is probably trying to get the pigs out to the field as we speak..."

"Well, you not wanting to eat your hard work is what is keeping both of us at the dining table." Lucy sighed, laying her head down onto her folded arms, resting on the table. "Even Wendy finished half an hour ago and she is _always_ the last to finish."

"She is nine – do not judge her." Levy puffed, pushing her plate away.

"I was not judging her, I was judging _you_. Wendy had to eat her pet goat and you did not even care about this particular pig. Wendy walked into the kitchen while he was _skinning_ her pet goat." Lucy lectured, pursing her lips. "At least finish your egg."

"We did not have enough sympathy for Wendy..." Levy muttered regretfully, picking up her fork again, eyeing the sausage.

"Why did you think I was so angry with Gray for his failed attempt to make her feel better?! I know he really had meant well, but he is always so terrible at expressing himself." Lucy sighed, her gaze passing through Levy as if she were not even there.

"I will eat the sausage...for Wendy, I will do it. I can eat this if she could eat her goat." Levy declared, biting roughly into the sausage, ripping a chunk off, the flavours exploding inside her mouth, a groan of pleasure escaping her. "It is...It is the most delicious thing...I have ever eaten." She gasped, turning to Lucy with excitement.

"Yes, 'Gajeel' makes great sausages." Lucy smiled happily, sitting up momentarily, only to lean against Levy's shoulder. "We have been sitting here for over an hour waiting on you to bite into it – can you understand why I've been getting annoyed with you?"

"Oav?" She replied sheepishly, earning a glare from Lucy. "Yes, Lucy...Sorry, Lu...I will listen to you in future."

"You had better, Vikrepper." Lucy teased, nudging her with her elbow.

"I will, Dottohern." Levy smirked, popping the other half of the sausage in her mouth smugly.

"Why does he keep calling me 'Dottohern'? What does it even mean?!" Lucy groaned, dropping her head to bang against the table.

"I have absolutely no idea. He will not even tell me what 'Vikreper' means, never mind 'Dottohern'. I only know 'Meg' because I was there when he came up with the name for Wendy. Do not ask me what he calls Coco – I have never heard him call her anything." Levy replied, quickly finishing her egg before finally standing up, Lucy snapping the plate out of her hand and rushing it to the kitchen, immediately reappearing with a smug grin.

"Well?" She asked, gesturing to the door

"What?" Levy returned, wondering what her cousin was up to.

"There is _no way_ I am missing 'Gajeel' going 'I told you so'." She grinned, walking up to Levy and starting to lead her to the door.

"He is _not_ going to say it if you are there. I _know_ he will wait until you leave." Levy nodded, her hand already on the handle.

"Then I will wait inside for him to say it, and you _will_ leave the door open a little so I can hear it – I sat here with you while you had breakfast." Lucy returned sternly, narrowing her eyes at her.

Levy rolled her eyes and opened the door. She stepped out into the courtyard to the sound of sweeping; when she closed the door behind her, she left a gap less than an inch between the door and its frame. She took a deep breath, steeling herself. She turned around, a large smile directed towards where she had heard sweeping. She blinked, watching as he began to gather the waste without even looking at her. Was he huffing? Seriously? She stood silently, watching as he disposed of the waste before beginning to walk towards her, his head down. He really was trying to ignore her!

"Ga-"

"Vkrepr, morning. Not seen you in a whire." He grinned, lifting his head, a smug expression across his tanned face. "_I told you so._"

"I knew you were going to say that." She puffed, folding her arms across her chest.

"_Gihe, are you going to listen to me next time?_" He laughed, ruffling her hair.

"No...Your sausages were delicious by the way." She mumbled, looking away from his grin.

"_Thank you, Vkrepr._" He replied smugly, earning a glare from Levy in return. "I have arr the animars out, so is it time to practice?"

"Well done for swapping." She smiled softly, wondering if Lucy was still eavesdropping. "You should always be practicing, but yes, I brought a book on geographical features out today."

"Gee-o-graph-i-cal?" He echoed, trying to break it up. "Geographical?"

"_Yes, well done. What is your word for it?_" Levy replied happily as she showed him the book, waiting for his response as they began to move to the fountain.

"'Er'." He grinned, earning a slap to his arm. "'Haihrurkekun'."

"Hai-whru-rek-kun...that was wrong, let me try again." She began, taking a deep breath. "...Hai-hru-rek-"

"Rke" He interrupted, a soft smile on his lips.

"Hai-hru-rke-kun...? Haihrurkekun?" She tried, looking up at him hopefully, unaware that she was biting her lip.

"Yes." He smirked, shaking his head at her as her excitement made her begin to bounce slightly.

She dropped down into the shade on the edge of the fountain, patting the warm bit of stone next to her. He snorted in amusement, lowering himself down to join her. She watched him as he leaned back, the slits of his eyes focused solely on her. His gaze did not break or even waver, soon she was captured by the beauty of his eyes. She leapt up as cold water splashed against her. She glared at him as she caught her breath again, the shock having winded her. The stupid idiot was even doubled over laughing at her.

"That was not funny, Gajeel. How would you like it if I did that to you!?" She snapped, sitting back on the edge angrily, opening the book as she refused to look at him.

"Refreshing. I am happy the coorer weather is coming – more rike my summer." He replied, a distant note to his voice as he looked beyond the house, looking for something he could only see in his mind.

"Why will you not tell me anything about where you come from?" She asked, frowning down at the open book in her hands.

"I cannot – for the sake of my peopre and you." He sighed, turning to look at her, longing clear in his ruby eyes.

"Your people...what are they like? Can you tell me anything about them?" She questioned, already sure that he would tell her no.

"_We live in family groups. We even have a royal family. My aunt was married to the king._" He replied quietly, changing to his own language.

"'Was'? What happened?" Levy asked, trying to hold back her concern.

"_I cannot explain, Vkrepr._" He sighed, turning to look at the rippling water. "_I came to Fiore for a reason, for the sake of my people. I should not have stayed here, but I did not know where to start._ _Before you offer, you cannot help me. I cannot even explain more than I already have about my mission._"

"_If you cannot tell me about your mission, then could you tell me more about your family? Do you miss them_?" Levy inquired softly, laying a hand on his studded forearm.

"Perhaps I could terr you a rittre." He smiled back, shaking his head at her need to fulfil her curiosity. "What wourd you rike to know...?"

"How big is your family?" She began, watching him carefully, unknowingly holding her breath.

"How big..._I have my _ruratrv_, but they have siblings unlike me. I helped with some of the younger children before I left. I was very good at my part in our _kippotero." He smirked, a proud look in his eyes.

"'Kippotero'?" Levy echoed, hearing a new word that they had not yet come across.

"_Collection of humans that help each other? My family hunted, or at least the males._" He explained, glancing across at the front door.

"Well, I guess that sounds like 'community'." She replied reassuringly, ignoring his obvious attention directed at the potential eavesdropping location – was Lucy still there? "_Does that mean you are good at hunting? You are certainly light on your feet and you are terrifying when you want to be...you are also good at handling the animals when you have slaughtered them._"

"Community." He repeated, nodding his head as he stored his new word. "_Does it not show in my appearance that I am a good hunter?_" He continued, a mildly puzzled expression pulling at his features.

"_What do you mean? You are tall, strong, and you do look fierce?_" Levy queried, turning completely towards him in her enthusiasm.

"_My studs, not my physical features, gihe._" He mused, shaking his head at her again. "_See all my studs? Each one is a successful lone hunt. You begin taking an active part in your family's role in the community at the age of sixteen seasons of your birth. Before that, the children help the women with their tasks._"

"How many studs do you have?! Were you ever scared on your lone hunts?! What were the women's tasks?!" She rushed, moving to kneel on the edge of the fountain.

"Vkrepr." Gajeel growled warningly, glancing over to the door again. "_Stay in my language – it is too dangerous for anyone to know things of my people._"

"My family is not going to hurt me." She returned, annoyed that he could even suggest that.

"_No, but if they let someone outside your family know, you could be forced to tell what you know._" He explained sternly, glaring at her. "_I should not have even told you as much as I have._"

"_So that is why you have kept refusing to tell me anything? Before, you did not trust me, but now, you fear that I would end up being questioned for information_?" Levy gasped, her eyes widening as he nodded at her. "_Is there anything you can answer safely_?"

"A few things, I berieve. I wish I could terr you everything, since you terr me so much about your own. You are different from the others." He mused, watching her carefully.

"_So will you tell me about your adventures_?"


	17. Chapter 17

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

**So, I wasn't going to update this week (various things from outside the online world, don't worry about it), but you guys are just too amazing! How can I make you wait an extra week when you're all so wonderful?! So, thank you to everyone reading/reviewing/following/favouriting this! You're keeping the two of us going with your enthusiasm, theories and wonderful encouragement! So, thank you to _MakeItHale_ for BETAing this! She's doing an amazing job, trust me! XD The errors you make when you're typing at 3am are actually quite funny at times!**

**Anyway, hope you enjoy this! ^_^ I'll update '****Rovr u nerrna viparketh et rka nuthouha ik Gajiru' at the same time as this ^_^ Feel free to request words or phrases for next week's update(s)!**

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**Chapter Seventeen**

"_So will you tell me about your adventures_?"

"Perhaps someday, Vkrepr." He sighed, gesturing to her book. "Time for resson."

"_...maybe you could answer some of my questions first? I promise I will not tell anyone and I doubt their answers would put anyone in danger..._?" She tried, moving back to sitting on the edge of the fountain.

"..._I have twenty-nine_." He grunted, his answer sounding more than a little reluctant. "_Each is a successful lone hunt_."

"_So, does that mean that your elders have almost their entire bodies pierced_?!" Levy gasped, trying to imagine studs covering every inch of Gajeel's body.

"_Gihe, no_!" He exclaimed, clearly attempting to hold back his laughter. "_Each male can earn thirty; after that then they may choose a _pura_. My _kurkar_ has thirty-two to show that he is the head of the family. Everyone is impressed that I have managed to earn so many so young. I am not even full grown and I will be allowed to choose my _pura_ when I return_." He smirked, closing his eyes.

"'Pura'?" She echoed, tapping his arm to bring him back out of his thoughts.

"Pura...Your aunt and uncre? They are 'purav', no?" He frowned, watching her thoughtfully. "They wish Dottohern and 'Captain Roke' to be 'purav'? They are together and have chirdren? They want you to find a 'pura'?"

"A 'pura'...I am not sure if we have a word for 'pura', but I guess the closest would be something like 'married' or 'husband' for the male and 'wife' for the female?" Levy suggested, frowning back at him.

"'Married'? What is 'married'?" He questioned, turning slightly to face her more.

"When two people lov- No, that is not always true...When two people agree to spend their lives together, they undergo a ceremony called 'marriage', after which they will live together and hopefully have children." Levy explained, hoping he would understand.

"_Ah, like we have a_ pureth_ ceremony? The male chooses his _pura_ and then the two families eat and talk while they leave to find somewhere to _pura_ in peace_." Gajeel nodded, looking mildly pleased with himself.

"...To 'pura'...in peace...?" Levy echoed, her eyes widening in realisation. "'Pura' does not translate as 'married'...exactly. I think...I think it is likely to be a similar idea...but the sole purpose of 'pura' is producing children...is it not...?"

"Why erse wourd you 'pura'?" Gajeel frowned, narrowing his eyes at her as if she were some strange being.

"_Some people have found that they rather enjoy_ '_pura_', _so they often do it for fun_." She mumbled bashfully, looking away from his gaze.

"'_Enjoy_ _pura_' _does not make sense...Do you mean they 'enjoy their_ _pura'_? _Or they 'enjoy_ _pureth'_? _My _ruratrv_ enjoy pureth_, _but they have only managed to have one child...my_ pirkar_ has lost many_." He replied sadly, turning his black slits to the ground.

"I am very sorry to hear that..." She muttered quietly, her own gaze turning to the ground.

She almost regretted asking now. She had been so curious about his home and his culture and now she had finally gotten him to talk about it. Now she could not help but feel guilty for bringing up unhappy memories. He had had to watch his family go through losing several children and she had just made him talk about it. Perhaps she should share her past with him, even if it was not quite as interesting?

"I am an orphan. I no longer have parents and I have no siblings. I am a burden to my father's sister, who has four children – all of whom you have met – and she should be trying to find Lucy a husband. In fact, she should even be starting to look for one for Coco...Instead, she is having to look for one for me. My uncle is constantly away fighting and I have let them both down by turning away two potential suitors. They were the sons of politicians and probably the best offers I will ever get. They were probably better offers than I deserved." She explained, fighting back both tears and guilt.

"I am sorry, Vkrepr. I did not know...but I do not- I shourd not ask, sorry." He sighed, Levy feeling his attention turn to her briefly before it returned to the ground.

"Please, ask...I can only talk to Lucy about this and I feel I should not. Lucy is expected to marry Captain Loke, but I am sure her heart belongs to Natsu. It is unfair of me to complain of being expected to marry someone I do not love and barely know. Lucy is accepting her duty and is only waiting for me to marry, or for the Captain to approach her father." Levy mumbled quietly, struggling against the urge to cry into Gajeel's tunic. "I am being very unfair to her."

"I have many questions...but I do not wish to make you cry, or feer rike I do not care because I am asking you for words." He replied, his right hand sliding along the inner edge of the fountain so that his arm was at an angle behind her.

"Either is actually helpful to me." She smiled back, still fighting tears as she leant back against his arm.

"I have...I have six to ask about...and then I wirr understand...but I am not sure if...if I wirr know what to say...in either ranguage." He smiled apologetically, earning a nod of encouragement from Levy. "'Orfan', 'parents', 'father'...I am not sure how to pronounce the next two..." He huffed, frowning as he paused to think. "'Pout-ten-zhar soo-ters', 'porri-teh-zhans' and 'ruve'?"

"Hahaha, I-I-I am s-sorry...I-I shou-should not laugh!" She burst out, leaning forward as she clutched her stomach, fully aware that Gajeel was glaring at her and very likely pouting. "'Potential suitors' are people offered to you as people you can marry and 'pura' with." Levy grinned, biting her lip slightly to stop herself from laughing.

"Then I have rots of 'pot-ten-zhar suitors'." He nodded smugly, showing her his left forearm with pride. "I have proved myserf very earry and onry have one more to earn! Many femares came to say goodbye when I reft to find my- I cannot say. No, I armost said too much. Sorry, Vkrepr." He finished, looking away from her with a particularly deep-set frown.

"Do not apologise, Gajeel." She replied, leaning back against his arm again and watching his sharp features closely. "'Politicians' are important people who make big decisions that affect the whole country." She continued, smiling softly at him as he turned his head slightly towards her. "'Love' is hard to explain, so I guess I will come back to that after I explain the others, okay?"

"Okay." He nodded, his narrow, black slit focused solely on her from the corner of his eye.

"If you are an 'orphan', you have no 'parents'. I believe you used the word 'ruratrv' earlier for 'parents', at least, that is what seemed to make sense. 'Parents' are the people that created you through 'pureth' and raise you. I think you said that your father had two extra studs to show that he is the head of your family?" Levy offered, watching him as he sat thinking for a few moments.

"'Kurkar' is 'father'? 'Father' is 'mother's' pura?" He asked, turning his head to look at her almost hopefully.

"Exactly!" She exclaimed, grinning up at him before suddenly frowning at him. "...How do you know 'mother'?"

"_My father taught me to surprise my_ pirkar – _we learn to talk from our close family. You have to be able to trust someone to learn from them_." He explained, smiling softly down at her. "'Pirkar' ev 'mother'."

"So that is why you would not learn from me? And why you were so...determined?" She asked, her hazel eyes wide as she realised just how forward she had been. "So why did you agree to teach me words? And why did you agree to learn from me?!"

"Vkrepr!" He growled, glaring at her. "_Calm down. You trusted me and even tried to defend me, but I could not trust you. I offered to teach you words to thank you for your faith in me_."

"Thank you." She uttered, gazing up into his fiery rubies, still trying to register just how important such a gesture must be.

"Levy! Mother has asked that we head into town on an errand for her!" Lucy called, breaking her trance.

"Ye-Yes, Lucy!" Levy called back, suddenly standing from the stone edge of the fountain. "What does she want us to do?"

"We are to take two of the goats into town to be exchanged – Wendy is going to come with us. She will explain which two are to go and choose which ones we should exchange them for." Lucy explained, approaching them with a look of resignation. "We have to go too since she does not want to leave Wendy with the responsibly of Gajeel, even if he will protect her, there is still technically a chance he will try to leave."

"He will not leave." Levy sighed, before turning to look down at Gajeel, finding him apparently now standing beside her. "Did you understand?"

"Yes." He grunted, his expression completely unreadable.

"Hello, Gajeel. Sorry to interrupt your lesson, but orders are orders." Lucy smiled up at the giant.

"Herro, Dottohern. Where is the meg?" He returned, glancing towards the door.

"Wendy will be out in a minute, so do not start being awkward." Lucy frowned, her hands going to her hips. "What does 'Dottohern' even mean?"

"Dottohern." He smirked, earning a glare from Lucy.

"Is it something to do with the fact Lucy takes care of the rabbits?" Levy offered, watching as a confused expression appeared across his whole face. "Gajeel, you know 'rabbits'." Levy lectured, her own hands moving to her hips.

"Maybe he has forgotten?" Lucy suggested, shrugging at Levy. "How would you explain 'rabbits' to him?"

"Well, I could either point to the stable, show him a rabbit, or I suppose I could try to act it out?" Levy explained, still frowning up at the giant.

"Wendy will be here any second, so we do not really have time to go get a rabbit. So, pointing it is." She sighed, beginning to point at the stable that held the rabbits. "Rabbits."

Gajeel tilted his head to one side.

"Gajeel, you know 'rabbits'!" Levy exclaimed, glaring up at him as he played dumb.

"Is everything ok?" Wendy's voice called shyly from the front door, the girl now trying to close it quietly.

"We are trying to get Gajeel to explain what 'Dottohern' is." Levy puffed, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

"Wendy, how would you act out 'rabbit'?" Lucy inquired, frowning up at the giant barbarian.

"Well...you would use your hands as ears...and hop around...?" Wendy replied thoughtfully, walking towards them.

"Fine. Rabbits!" Lucy snapped up at the barbarian, raising her hands up to rest on her head, one up straight while the other folded slightly as if it had flopped, before beginning to bounce around, glaring at him.

"GIHE! E ring oio vka ruv u dottohern!" Gajeel burst out, grinning happily to himself.

"Hey! What did he just say?!" Lucy yelled angrily, glaring all her hatred at the giant.

"I told you she was a dottohern." Levy translated, frowning thoughtfully. "Gajeel, what is 'hern'?"

"Lev, he is calling me 'dottohern', not 'hern' – why woul-"

"Hern." Gajeel repeated, pointing at Wendy.

"Hern... 'Hern' is not 'child', since 'child' is 'kkeng'...but Wendy is a 'hern'...Would Natsu be a 'hern'?" Levy asked, an idea beginning to form.

"Gihe, ti! Natsu ev u dio!" Gajeel mused, still grinning.

"Lucy, 'hern' is girl and 'dio' is boy. He is calling you 'dotto'-girl." Levy explained, not taking her eyes off of Gajeel as she watched him process the new information. "Gajeel, what is 'dotto'? Is it another word for 'rabbit'?"

"Gihe, dotto rudder." Gajeel smirked, watching as Lucy's expression slowly changed from angry to happiness before reverting back to anger.

"Levy, you told me 'rudder' was 'rabbit', right?" Lucy demanded, glaring at Gajeel as Levy nodded nervously. "'Dotto rudder' is 'bunny rabbit', is it not?"

"I-I believe so." Levy stammered, sidestepping slyly away from Gajeel.

"Then he just called me 'bunnygirl'!" She snapped, launching a kick at Gajeel, catching him off guard and knocking him backwards into the fountain.


	18. Chapter 18

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

**Well, I'm glad everyone enjoyed the last chapter so much! XD Thank you to everyone favouriting/following/reading/reviewing this! It really means a lot to both of us, especially when we get to read your enthusiasm! XD Thank you to MakeItHale for BETAing this!**

**I hope you enjoy this chapter! ^_^**

**(****_Rovr u nerrna viparketh et rka nuthouha ik Gajiru has been updated!_)**

* * *

**Chapter Eighteen**

Levy had to hold in her laughter as Gajeel rose from the water, glaring at her cousin. What had he expected?! He had been teasing her for months and he did not even understand the seriousness of his insult! In their culture, a 'bunnygirl' was a young woman that had willingly given up her virtue for the fun of male company, but Levy had no idea what it would mean in his. She could ask him, of course, but this really did not seem like the best moment.

"_Vkrepr, your cousin is far too emotional_." Gajeel growled, wringing the water out of his giant black mass of hair.

"_You offended her greatly by calling her 'dottohern' – it is a very serious accusation_." Levy explained quietly, glancing nervously at a seething Lucy. "_You should apologise and explain that you meant no offence_."

"'Dottohern' is not a bad thing – it is our word for a werr-off daughter that amuses herserf by herping those under her. It seemed appropriate; even more so for your interest in the rabbits. To me, you _are_ a 'dottohern'. A 'dottohern' is often offered to the King's sons as a pura, being seen as a good future queen." Gajeel explained, forcing himself to regain his neutral expression as he tried to calm his temper.

"...You thought...You think I would make a good future queen?" Lucy mumbled, watching him with her jaw hanging, unable to believe what he had just said.

"That is very different to what a 'bunnygirl' is to us...That...That is the complete opposite...So, when you are looking for...for a 'pura', you would want someone like Lucy?" Levy asked, looking down at the cobbles, feeling her cheeks beginning to warm. Her attention snapped back up to him as he suddenly scoffed. "What was that for?!"

"She wourd not do werr in the Ragkiz famiry, gihe! I said for the royar famiry! She wourd make a terribre pura for me! I was surprised when my aunt was chosen to be the king's pura, but we were proud! The purav of the royar mares are gentre, kind and caring, but do not work unress it benefits others. My aunt was arways trying to work, even attempting to hunt – my father often had to go rooking for her!" He grinned, stepping out of the fountain. "Her son seems to be just rike her! Rivery and determined with a true, fighting spirit!"

"Lev, what is a 'pura'?" Lucy asked, looking at Levy with a hopeful doubt.

"It seems to be similar to 'husband and wife', but with the sole purpose of reproducing." Levy replied sheepishly, both their cheeks turning crimson.

"So...a 'mate', like with animals?" Wendy offered, looking up at the giant.

"Yes! Exactly! Gajeel, 'pura' is 'mate'! Thank you, Wendy." Levy rushed, quickly turning to lead the way to the stable that held the goats.

"Vkrepr?" Gajeel grunted as Levy reached for the bolt.

"Yes, Gajeel?" She replied, sliding back the bolt and opening the door.

"The goats are in the fierd." He stated as her eyes were met with the empty stable.

"Right, yes, so they are!" She babbled, quickly turning to face the gate and marching off towards it.

"Vkrepr?" He grunted again, causing her to stop. "The ropes?" Gajeel offered, shaking his head at her.

"Yes, Gajeel, bring some ropes – we will need them to take the goats into town." Levy ordered, fully aware that Lucy was laughing at her.

"Thank you, Gajeel. Meet us out at the field with two ropes for leading the goats." Lucy added, taking Wendy's hand and beginning to follow Levy.

Levy sighed as she waited for Lucy and Wendy to reach her, silently awaiting Lucy's teasing as she refused to turn to look at them. Why should she not be embarrassed talking about each other as 'mates'? He even thought that Lucy would be a good 'mate' for a prince, but not for the Ragkiz family...whatever the 'Ragkiz family' was. She could only assume that they must be Gajeel's family. He had said that Lucy would not make a good mate for him. In fact, he had even mentioned earlier that he had lots of potential mates because he had proved himself while he was very young. Perhaps, like Lucy, he can afford to be picky? Of course he could not understand her situation if that was true!

"Lev? Are you okay?" Lucy asked as they reached her, laying a hand on her shoulder.

"We were talking about each other as 'mates'." She mumbled, trying to ignore the heat in her cheeks.

"No, I am sure that is not what we were talking about...You and Wendy were not mentioned in the terms of 'mates'. _I_ should be the one embarrassed, not you. He never referred to _you_ as a 'mate'." Lucy returned, frowning at her.

"I suppose you are right." Levy smiled, unsure of the current turmoil fighting within her.

"Which two?" Gajeel's rough voice cut through the air as they stopped at the field gate, startling Levy as she suddenly became aware of his presence.

Had he heard them? It was possible, but it should not matter. He was their servant and the two of them had been discussing the subject of each others' potential mates earlier. She had even told him that Lucy was the only one she could talk to about it. He would assume that her conversation with Lucy had been perfectly normal. He would assume that her strange behaviour was that she did not feel comfortable having such a personal conversation in front of him and Wendy. But she had been having that conversation with him. And Wendy was there with them now. She really could not explain her behaviour to him; she could not even explain it to herself. Hopefully he would not ask.

Levy watched in silence as Gajeel chased the goats around the field. She laughed with Lucy and Wendy every time that one of the two billies only just managed to escape capture again. He could not use his predatory skills in front of Wendy and she knew it. She was getting to watch him dance around as if he were like any other man chasing goats. It was rather amusing watching him being so caring towards her youngest cousin's feelings. He did not want to scare her, as he had accidentally her. They cheered as he wrestled the first billy goat to the ground, tightening one of the ropes around its neck before leaping up to his feet and jogging over to them.

"_Vkerpr, you distract them or this is going to take me all day_." He pleaded, handing her the rope as she opened the gate to allow the goat out.

"_Sorry, Gajeel, but this is too amusing! You had to expect payback at some point for you letting the goats push me into the fountain_." She teased, smirking smugly up at him.

"_But that was two moons ago! And Dottohern just knocked me into the fountain_!" He exclaimed, gesturing to himself, his tunic still clinging to his body. Levy averted her eyes, glad that the woven, white material was currently only clinging to his torso.

"_I had to dry in the sun and so will you_." She nodded, remembering that she must have been in a similar state, a mild blush escaping her control as she tried to picture what she must have looked like at the time from his point of view.

"Fine." He grunted, pouting slightly before turning his back on them. "One more."

"What were the two of you talking about?" Lucy asked, looking between the two.

"Just the first time that I helped him with the animals." Levy replied lightly, waving off the subject as if were nothing.

She laughed as Gajeel lunged at a goat, only to realise he had grabbed the wrong one. He released it and stood up, looking around him for the similarly marked male. He grinned, the sun glinting off of his sharp, white, pointed teeth as he spotted it. He calmly walked towards it, seemingly minding his own business. Once he was less than two meters away, he leapt at it, its back leg only just avoiding his fingers as it fled. It did not even look back as the sound of Gajeel's body slamming into the ground made the others scatter in all directions. He got up from the ground, a bone rattling growl escaping him. He silenced himself, glancing behind him as Lucy and Wendy turned their attention to the clouds above them.

Levy nodded to him to let him know his growl had not been recognised by her cousins. Levy shrugged as Lucy turned her attention from the sky to her, clearly wondering if she had heard thunder too. She was not going to explain that that was Gajeel's _serious_ growl. Even Lucy had heard his mild threat growl, the one that said 'back off', but only Levy had heard his 'one of you is going to die' growl. He had allowed her to hear it and had tried to comfort her afterwards. He would never direct that growl at them; he would not even trust the others to hear it. If they heard, they would fear him. He trusted her.

"Two!" He yelled as a cheer erupted from her cousins, bringing her attention back to the now finished chase.

"Well done, Gajeel!" She called back, grinning up at him as he jogged over.

"Thank you, Vkrepr." He smirked, slipping out through the gate as she opened it.

"I thought you said it was going to take you all day?" She grinned teasingly, earning a snort of amusement from him.

"_Did you really have no faith in me, Vkrepr_?" He replied, raising an eyebrow questioningly at her.

"_Of course I did, Gajeel, and you just proved me right_." She laughed, handing him the rope for the first goat.

"_Always, Vkrepr_." He grinned, ruffling her hair before gesturing to the road that led to Magnolia.

Levy shook her head at him, rolling her eyes. He was always so big headed and she knew that nothing she ever said would change that. She began walking in front of him, Lucy joining her as Wendy walked alongside the goats behind Lucy. The goats would not be running away anytime soon. Levy smiled back at Gajeel over her shoulder, earning a knowing glance from Lucy. Levy frowned at her, wondering what her best friend was trying to inform her of.

"Are you okay with giving up these two, Meg?" Gajeel grunted from behind her, addressing Wendy.

"Uh-huh! Mother pointed out that there have been too many kids born with problems, so I said that we probably needed new billy goats." Wendy chimed happily. "Mother agreed, saying that Father would likely agree that we needed some new blood in the herd."

"That was pretty interrigent of you, Meg." He hummed, likely smiling down at the nine year old. Levy just could not correct his terrible pronunciation, not in front of his favourite little girl.

"Wendy knows a lot about taking care of goats, does she not?" Lucy added, turning her head to look at the giant barbarian.

"The meg teaches me new things about them regurarry. Arr I do is give them as much feed as she terrs me and get them in and out of the fierd for her. She grooms them, checks their hearth, and decides if anything needs to be done. Your father has put a rot of responsibirity on her." He replied, his gaze focused straight ahead of them.

"Looking after the goats is Wendy's hobby – it is something that her and Father enjoy doing together, but he does not expect her to." Lucy smiled, turning her head to look towards Magnolia. "Father was pleased when I asked if I could get a few rabbits. He said I could have as many as I wanted if I allowed some to find their way to the table. I agreed and I make sure that I keep my own personal rabbit in a separate hutch. It has had a litter and its litter lives with the others."

"I did not mean to sraughter the meg's goat...I did not know." He grunted apologetically.

"I know, Gajeel, and Carla is doing great!" Wendy beamed, thinking of her new little white goat.

"I think I will need to choose a new rabbit soon...Mine is getting old." Lucy sighed, her hand moving to her arm.

"Why do you not buy one? You could get a male and introduce 'new blood' into your rabbits too?" Levy suggested happily, smiling reassuringly at her cousin. "If you get a male, you would not feel so guilty about keeping it separate!"

"Hm, that sounds like a good idea, Lev...I think I will." Lucy smiled back, glancing up at the giant to give him a smile as well.


	19. Chapter 19

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

**Hello! I had planned to try to give you two updates this week, but as most of you will have noticed, the site was down for two days :P Thank you to everyone reviewing/reading/favouriting/following this! We both really appreciate it! It makes us really happy to hear your opinions, it actually makes our day! So thank you everyone! And thank you, _MakeItHale,_ for BETAing this! ^_^ Hopefully I'll actually have the cover pic done for this by next week's update! ;)**

**Once again, ****Rovr u nerrna viparketh et rka nuthouha ik Gajiru has been updated! ^_^ Please enjoy both updates! ^_^**

* * *

**Chapter Nineteen**

Levy sighed happily, watching Lucy stroke the new gray rabbit snuggled in her arms. Lucy clearly could not be happier with her choice and, having also bumped into Natsu in town, her thoughts were definitely happy ones. She could not even guess how those thoughts were changing, but she would likely find out later. She smiled over her shoulder at Wendy, earning a very happy smile back as the girl skipped alongside her two new billy goats. It had been a very successful trip into town.

"Perhaps we could all-"

"Lucy! Levy!" A female voice called out, a dust cloud erupting from the ground as her middle cousin raced towards them. "Father wrote ahead to say he would be here tomorrow! Mother says he will not be staying long!" She rushed out, stopping inches from Lucy.

"Breathe, Coco! Explain slowly!" Lucy ordered, trying to resettle her new rabbit.

"Father had an express letter sent to Mother." She began, trying to slow herself down as she pushed the strands of fair hair that had escaped her plait back behind her ears. "He has written to say that he will be back tomorrow, early in the morning. He says he has important news and that he will not be staying long. He will stop by the Barracks on his way home to collect Gray."

"Gray is coming home?!" Lucy rushed, before stopping herself. "Why would Father order Gray home? He was pleased that Gray wanted to enlist; our brother will not have completed his training yet?"

"Mother did not say, but she says that the two of you must be ready for his arrival, so it really must be important!" Coco exclaimed, her words picking up speed again as her large, brown eyes widened with increasing excitement

"Vraago!" Gajeel barked, glaring at Coco.

"Sorry, Gajeel...I will slow down..." She replied sheepishly, earning questioning looks from both Levy and Lucy. "He cannot understand me when I talk too fast...I said that it must be something important, because both Lucy and Levy need to be ready for our Father's return."

"In what way?" He grunted, watching her carefully as Levy turned her head to look up at him, earning an eye roll from the giant.

"I do not know, but I believe Mother intends to make sure that they are bathed and dressed appropriately. I was wondering if, perhaps, Captain Loke was finally returning to claim Lucy?" Coco suggested, earning a thoughtful nod from Gajeel.

"Then Vkrepr and Dottohern shourd go on ahead. The meg and I wirr get the goats settred." Gajeel returned seriously.

Levy and Lucy nodded their agreement and quickly followed after Coco as she turned back to the estate, the poor rabbit still in Lucy's arms.

...

Levy sat on the bathroom windowsill, absently listening to Lucy's theories. Her aunt had refused to explain, saying that she was unaware of the exact situation either. No special food had been requested and no comment had been made regarding the rabbit in Lucy's arms. Her aunt had not even inquired about the goats, or of the fact that Wendy still had not reappeared. Instead, Lucy had been sent upstairs immediately to bathe, being told to give the rabbit to Coco as Lucy had began to protest. Levy had been ordered to help Lucy before bathing herself.

"I am impressed that Gajeel managed to take control of the situation and get Coco to explain calmly." Lucy mused from the bath, rubbing the bar of soap over her arms.

"Hm, so am I, but Coco did explain that he could not understand her if she spoke too fast. I had not even realised he had spoken to her. She only goes outside on errands with Aunt or to look after Uncle's horse when he is home...I suppose she also collects the newspaper and post in the morning from the box at the gate." Levy sighed thoughtfully, watching as the giant herded the goats into the courtyard, Wendy standing by the fountain with the two new goats.

"You spend a lot of time talking to him and your hobby is books." Lucy returned, rinsing off the soap.

"My hobby is learning." Levy huffed, watching as Gajeel shut the courtyard gate behind him, signalling to Wendy that she could let the two new goats loose. "I am interested in lots of things, especially languages. I have been enjoying learning his language and have enjoyed teaching him ours."

"Is that all you have enjoyed?" Lucy replied, raising her left leg from the water to begin applying soap to it.

"What do you mean?" Levy asked, turning her head from the scene below.

"You spend every day with him, several hours every day, and you seem to have begun enjoying his company more than your mother's books?" Lucy suggested softly, not turning to look back at Levy.

"I love nothing more than I love my mother's books." Levy retorted, turning back to watch Gajeel drive the goats into their stable.

"I did not mention the word 'love', I said 'enjoy'." Lucy teased, finally turning to look at Levy as she swapped legs. "You were getting embarrassed before when he started talking about 'mates'."

"What are you implying, Lu?" Levy sighed, smiling as Gajeel closed the door behind the goats before turning to grin at her little cousin.

"I think you like Gajeel." Lucy stated, turning her attention back to rinsing her leg.

"Of course I like Gajeel...He is kind and, even you have to admit, he is very intriguing. I like that he takes such good care of Wendy. I am also impressed by how well he handles the animals." Levy explained, watching as the giant ruffled Wendy's hair.

"Uh-huh, and you like that he lets you – and only you – into his world. The two of you disappear into your own conversations in his language as if the rest of us do not even exist. You share secrets with him; I know the two of you laugh with each other over us, as well as teasing each other. I saw the look in your eyes as he said 'unroove, Vikrepper'." Lucy smirked knowingly. "I do not need to understand what he said to understand how you felt about him saying it."

"It is pronounced 'un-ru-ov' and it means 'always'." Levy explained, sighing as Wendy disappeared into the stable with a brush to groom the goats and Gajeel headed back out of the courtyard to bring in the sheep.

"What was he saying 'always' to, Lev?" Her best friend asked quietly from the bath, stopping completely in her bathing to turn onto her front to watch Levy with great curiosity.

"I had just said 'Of course I did, Gajeel, and you just proved me right'." Levy sighed, leaning back on the window frame as she heard a distant rumble of thunder that she knew to really be Gajeel's growl.

"What had he said before that?" Lucy inquired, not taking her eyes off of Levy.

"'Did you really have no faith in me, Vikreper?'" Levy uttered quietly, the flock of sheep suddenly emerging through the gateway, their bleating almost making her words inaudible.

Levy heard water slosh behind her and decided that Lucy must have ducked under the water. She sighed and watched as Gajeel drove the sheep into their stable, his growl now completely silent as he shouted at them to scare them. He slammed the door shut behind them and leaned against the door with what looked like a sigh. He caught her watching him and waved up at her, grinning. She waved back, smiling happily down at him. She jumped as she felt two arms wrap around her.

"You really do like him, do you not?" Lucy whispered into her ear, waving down at Gajeel as she spotted him.

"He trusts me and I trust him. I am not sure why, but he refers to me as 'kupeno', which means 'family'. He accepts me as I am and cares enough to call me 'family', why should I not like him?" Levy replied quietly, an ache in her chest as she leant back into Lucy's arms.

"Time for your bath, Lev...Maybe I should go invite Gajeel to come help you instead of me?!" Lucy teased.

Levy's entire face turned the same ruby of Gajeel's eyes as she struggled to escape Lucy's arms in her embarrassment.

"Vkrepr!"

Levy froze, suddenly aware of the fear in Lucy's large brown eyes, feeling herself already halfway off of the window ledge. She held completely still, aware that Lucy's arms were the only thing holding her up as she hung out of the bathroom window. She could not pull on Lucy to get herself back inside or they would both go over, but if she just sat here, she would likely fall anyway. Was Lucy strong enough to pull her back up? Why had she been so stupid?! Lucy had only been teasing her! She teased Lucy about Natsu all the time!

"Gajeel! Help!"

Levy felt panic trying to take over her body as Lucy's strained words escaped.

"Dottohern! Nar hi!" Gajeel's voice echoed, a mild hint of panic in his own voice.

"What? What did you just say?" Lucy called out, her panic growing.

"Nar hi! Nar hi ik Vkrepr!" He yelled up, his voice suddenly calm and demanding.

"Lev, what is he saying?! Why can he-"

"He is just as worried as you, Lu, that is why he cannot think clear enough to speak in our language!" Levy cried out, feeling Lucy's fingers begin to slip. "Just give me a minute, I am not sure if I heard him correctly – I think he said 'nar hi'?"

"Oav! Dottohern, nar hi ik Vkrepr!" Gajeel ordered, his voice beginning to strain.

"Lu, he is telling you to let go of me." Levy explained as calmly as she could, hoping she had translated correctly.

"Let-"

"Just do it, Lu." Levy smiled, letting go of Lucy's arms. "I trust him and he trusts me."

Levy felt herself falling backwards. The same strange slow motion feeling that she had gotten as she had fallen from that crate in the bookstore came over her. However this time she knew that Gajeel would be there to catch her. She let herself float downwards, knowing that she that was falling faster than it felt. She calmly waited for Gajeel's arms to encircle her, to protect her from the pain she knew she would feel at hitting the ground, just as he had in the bookstore. All that was happening differently was that she was falling from a window and not a crate. The distance was greater but, to Levy, that just meant that Gajeel had more chance of successfully catching her again.

She felt two large muscular arms wrap around her waist, slamming her back into a warm, solid chest as they tightened around her. She could feel his heart pounding in his chest, his fear hitting her with every beat. Had he really had so little faith in himself? She tried to turn in his arms, suddenly aware that his face was buried in the crook of her neck. He slowly lifted his head, his face terrifyingly pale. She smiled brightly back at him.

"_I knew you would catch me._" She whispered, placing a hand on his cheek.

"_Always_." He uttered, a sigh of relief escaping him as he closed his eyes, his heart beginning to slow.

"Levy!"

Levy looked up at Lucy who was leaning out of the window, her terrified expression changing to one of relief as Levy smiled back up at her. She felt Gajeel slide her down his body again, a slight warmth coming to her cheeks as they had the time before. She smiled and shook her head at him, patting her body to show him that she was fine. She could not yet manage to speak again. It had taken all her energy to say just a few words to him, but now she felt completely drained. He sighed with relief again, before finally releasing her completely and taking an awkward step back.

"Thank you, Gajeel!" Lucy cried out from above, breaking their eye contact.

He nodded up to her before smiling nervously down at Levy. She smiled back up at him, laying a hand on his arm before turning to head to the front door, trying not to stumble as the shock fought her for control over her body. She could not let Gajeel see just how shaken she was. She had trusted him completely, trusted him with her life. She had had more faith in him than he had and she could not even explain why. She had trusted him and he had saved her life. She had almost died all because she had over reacted to being teased. He had saved her after she had just been being teased about liking him.


	20. Chapter 20

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

**Hey! Sorry about posting this today and not yesterday, but I hadn't realised that yesterday was the Thursday that I was getting all my hair cut off until after I'd updated *sigh* Anyway, I managed to raise over £200 for Macmillan and sent off 14 inches of hair to Little Princess Trust! ^_^ So thank you to everyone reviewing/reading/following/favouriting! I'm so glad so many of you enjoyed the last chapter and that you're still enjoying the story! XD Due to a problem with my laptop (assuming it's the laptop since I'm having the same problem with Facebook), I haven't been able to upload the cover pic :/ I'll try to get it up in the next couple of days! There won't be any updates at all next week since I've got visitors all week, sorry! As always, thank you so much to _M__akeItHale_ for BETAing this!**

**Due to the fact that I'm running out the door, ****Rovr u nerrna viparketh et rka nuthouha ik Gajiru hasn't been updated yet! I'll get it up by midnight, promise! ^_^ Please enjoy! ^_^**

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**Chapter Twenty**

The next morning, Levy took her place at the table, earning concerned glances from the rest of her family. She had gone straight to bed after she had gotten back into the house. Lucy had met her at the bottom of the stairs and led her to her room, helping her undress and get into bed. Lucy then explained that she was going to go inform her mother of what had just happened. Lucy had been adorably concerned at leaving Levy on her own, but Levy had chased her out. Her aunt appeared with her confiscated books less than an hour later, explaining that Gajeel would get an extra large dinner as a 'thank you'.

Levy smiled sheepishly at her plate, unable to meet Gray's gaze. She had slept in slightly and the others had clearly decided to let her. Hopefully someone would have told Gajeel that she was actually fine and not to worry about her. She felt Lucy take her hand under the table, squeezing it lightly. She smiled at Lucy reassuringly as she watched her best friend fight her guilt while tears threatened to fall. It had not been her fault as far as Levy was concerned. She had had plenty of time to think and she was certainly ready to accept that it was her own fault for overreacting. Her childishness had been rewarded by allowing her to be held in Gajeel's protective arms once more.

It was not a feeling she would ever be allowed to get used to.

"Good morning, Levy." Gray began, a note of concern to his voice. "How are you this morning?"

"I am fine, really – I just got a bit of a fright yesterday, but I am completely fine." She replied, turning to look at him happily. "It is nice to have you back again. It has been far too long since you left."

"It does feel like forever." He smirked, throwing his arm over her shoulders and squeezing her against him before going back to his breakfast, nodding to her own. "You do not get food as good as this at the Barracks."

"Hm, and Gajeel's sausages are particularly good!" She chimed, stabbing her fork into one of them, suddenly realising that she had four. "I seem to have gained a few extra for my foolishness?"

"You missed both lunch and dinner yesterday." Her uncle explained, watching her carefully. "And you had quite the fright. The barbarian has been well rewarded for his service to you. He had bacon with his porridge last night and he had a couple of eggs with it this morning. I am not sure what he will be fed tonight, but that will likely not be up to any of us."

"Uncle?" Levy began, a crease forming between her eyebrows.

"I have been invited to the capital." He explained, looking around the table at the rest of his family. "I have brought Gray home to watch over his mother and youngest sisters while we are gone. The King does wish to meet him but plans to have him make a name for himself first – he is in no hurry, as he plans to live much longer."

"While we are gone...?" Lucy asked, lowering her fork.

"Why is he taking such an interest in Gray?" Levy added, narrowing her eyes at her uncle.

"I am to bring my eldest daughter to be of company to his granddaughter, the Princess of Fiore." He continued, cutting into a piece of bacon. "He has heard of my male servant and, from Captain Loke, that my niece is successfully teaching him to speak Fiorian. I am to bring both of you to the palace with me. I believe he was particularly happy to have come across you, Levy. I think he hopes that my bringing you to the palace will influence his granddaughter when she sees how much you have achieved at such a young age."

"Father-"

"Gray, we cannot go against the King, you know this. I am sure your sister and your cousin will be able to inform you of what the Princess is like when they return, so their journey to the capital should have your blessing." Her uncle interrupted, cutting Gray off completely.

"Yes, Father." Gray replied bitterly, glaring at the egg on his plate.

"Why do the characteristics of the Princess affect Gray?" Levy asked, holding back the demanding tone from her voice.

"The King has decided that he may be a better suitor for his young granddaughter than the sons and grandsons of his advisors. I am to the King as Captain Loke is to me and he feels that Gray marrying his granddaughter will add strong blood into his future descendants; his own son is not a particularly large man. Unfortunately, that does mean that Gray has as much choice in who he marries as a woman of his age – none, if he proves himself." Her uncle sighed, looking across at his son apologetically. "If he is chosen and refuses the Princess, he will be executed for treason."

Levy turned to look at Gray, her eyes wide with horror. Not even Gray was getting a choice for his bride? How long had this been decided? How long had Gray known? How could her uncle do this to both his eldest daughter and his only son? Surely he could allow Gray a choice? No, it was not for him to decide. The King held all the cards and his people had to follow. If he denied the King, he could lose his position and possibly his life. If Gray...If Gray said no, he would lose his life for sure. He was only sixteen and his choice was either to accept the Princess, whom he has never met, as his wife...or die.

"That is not fair..." Levy whispered bitterly to her plate, tears stinging her eyes.

"I agree, Levy, but the King is not a kind man." Her aunt replied, her bitterness cutting deeply through the thick air.

"Do not speak of the King in such a way!" Her uncle snapped, glaring warningly down the table. A glint of fear flickered through his eyes, surprising Levy. He coughed quietly before starting again with a forced calm. "The King wishes to announce a new plan. Guards are to hold the land we have gained from Bosco, but I will not find out what is expected of our troops until I meet with the King."

"Must we really go with you? Could we not stay here to enjoy Gray's company a little longer?" Lucy suggested quietly, looking at Gray as tears threatened to fall once again as she realised her brother held the same fate as her.

"You must come, as must Levy. Gray is to ready the male servant to travel while you go pack your things. The fool cannot expect to be allowed to keep that torn tunic on in the presence of the King. He must also be forced into a reasonable pair of shoes." He explained, nodding to Gray as he finished clearing his plate.

"Yes, Father. How do you expect me to clean him? I shall likely have to cut off that _mess_ that is referred to as his 'hair'. I do not know how he has not felt the urge to cut it off himself." Gray sighed, standing up from the table.

"Take him to one of the guest rooms – we cannot have him stripping in the middle of the courtyard in front of your sisters. Use its bathroom and have that silly servant girl of your mother's clean up after you have finished." He sighed, waving Gray off to ready the giant.

"I am not sure he will be happy about being forced into one of the bedrooms." Levy stated, turning to look at Gray as he made for the door.

"He was perfectly happy to walk into yours." Her uncle returned, narrowing his eyes at her warily.

"No, he stayed in the doorway. He leaned in to open the door, but he never stepped inside. I do not think he likes being inside our rooms." She explained, trying to sound confident under her uncle's searching gaze.

"Then help Gray persuade him into one and then go pack your things." He grunted, unrolling his newspaper as he pushed his plate away.

Levy nodded before quickly glancing reassuringly at Lucy and following after Gray. Gajeel was sweeping the courtyard as usual as she emerged from the dark dining room. His head shot up to look at her, his face full of concern before instantly turning expressionless. What was that about? She glanced up at Gray, finding him looking down at her thoughtfully before turning his attention to Gajeel. She could feel her cousin watching her as they approached Gajeel. The male servant paused in his sweeping to watch them. He stood completely upright, pulling himself to his full height.

"Good morning, Gajeel." She smiled, waving at him, earning a nod in return.

"Does he not know how to respond?" Gray asked, narrowing his eyes suspiciously at the giant.

"Yes, he is just unsure of you." Levy replied, walking up to the side of the fountain and taking a seat. "Come join me."

"Why-"

"Just come join me, Gray." She laughed, patting the stone next to her.

Gray walked up to her, looking between her and the giant male barbarian. Levy could see Gajeel's body tense as he watched them. Gray took a seat on the warm stone on her right with an obvious air of uncertainty. She patted the warm stone on her left, smiling up at Gajeel. He held the brush up to her, confusing Gray. She laughed and patted the stone edge again, shaking her head at him but not saying a word. She was going to make him follow their usual routine to make him relax. She knew he would not speak until he stopped being so tense. He lowered himself down next to her, eyeing Gray warily as they sat on opposite sides of her.

"Gray, this is Gajeel. Gajeel, this is Gray." Levy introduced, earning a snort of amusement from Gajeel.

"Hello, Gajeel." Gray sighed, still watching the giant. "What is-"

"Gajeel, Gray has been ordered by my uncle to take you inside. Do you understand?" She asked, earning a wary nod in return. "Gray, you are going to take Gajeel into the house. You are not going to use force, or threaten him for that matter."

"How else am I supposed to?!" Gray exclaimed, glaring at the male servant as Gajeel tensed again.

"By asking him calmly and quietly and by walking in front of him while gesturing to him to follow you. You will get nowhere with him if you start yelling at him and getting frustrated. You will start to speak quicker if you do and he will not be able to understand you. Also, if you are tense around him, he will be tense around you – as he is now. If you are tense, you are a potential threat." She explained, before turning to Gajeel with a sweet smile. "Is that correct?"

"Yes. _Your cousin does not seem to like me particularly much, Vkrepr_." He replied, looking back down at her, his expression softening slightly.

"He is just unsure of you, as you are unsure of him. He does not wish to hurt you anymore than you wish to hurt him. He is actually very kind and sweet, but he is just as shy and reserved as you." She smirked, earning a glare from him.

"I am not shy." Gray huffed, still watching Gajeel, a mild curiosity catching him.

"You are certainly awkward. You would not tell someone you liked them unless you had to – you do not even admit that Natsu is your best friend! In fact, you tell people that you cannot stand him and he is a pain, but we both know how much you actually like him." She nodded, smirking at him this time instead of Gajeel. "Okay, now, will the two of you behave, or will I have to come with you?"

"Come with." Gajeel muttered, watching Gray carefully.

"I do not bite, Barbarian." Gray sighed, frowning at the male servant as he stood up from the edge of the fountain.

"Vkrepr?" Gajeel grunted, looking down at her as he stood up, watching as Gray offered Levy his hand to help her up.

"He means no harm, but I will come with you if you wish. I will likely end up sitting outside the bathroom translating for the two of you." She mused, allowing Gray to pull her up.

"Thank you, Vkrepr...Good morning."


	21. Chapter 21

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

**Really sorry about the wait! I hope you find this chapter worth it! Thank you to everyone reviewing/reading/following/favouriting this! It is honestly the motivation we need and love! XD Thank you to _MakeItHale_ for BETAing this! XD**

**Ok, I'm trying to finish a couple of sketches (which I am actually going to ink! I'm really nervous!), so I hope you don't mind, but I'll wait until the update on Thursday to update ****Rovr u nerrna viparketh et rka nuthouha ik Gajiru :) Please enjoy this latest update! ^_^**

_(Also, I'm trying to think of a tag for this fic for on Tumblr? 'Mountains to Dust' is apparently a culture festival? I didn't know that until I looked up the tag 'Mountains to Dust'. Anyone got any ideas?)_

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**Chapter Twenty-One**

Levy cautiously took her first step into the men's wing, gulping as she glanced down the corridor. She slowly released her breath as she recognised it as a flipped version of the girls' wing, seemingly identical in every way. She followed after Gray - Gajeel less than a meter behind her - towards the third door on her right. The first had been Gray's, so the second would have been the first spare bedroom, but even a fool would realise that Gray did not want Gajeel making a mess in _his_ shared bathroom.

"You can wait in here while I get the Barbarian to take that 'tunic' off in the bathroom." Gray sighed, letting her into the spare bedroom.

Levy placed herself awkwardly on the sofa, watching as Gray lead Gajeel into the bathroom. Within seconds she could hear Gajeel getting agitated. She knocked on the door; Gray called back that everything was fine. She could hear the water running into the bath, along with Gray's strained attempt to talk as soothingly as he could to Gajeel. Levy guessed that he was likely trying to persuade Gajeel to take the tunic off, but hopefully he did not try to force it off of the giant. He had not liked Levy grabbing it, never mind Gray trying to pull it off of him.

"Perhaps I should try to explain?" Levy called through the door, listening for a response.

"You think he will strip in front of you?" Gray grumbled, opening the door slightly.

"No, but if I explain what he has to do...and tell him that he has to put another one on once he is clean...he might be more cooperative." She suggested sheepishly, trying not to think of the picture her cousin had just put into her head.

"Fine. I will wait out here – let me know when you win him over." Gray sighed, stepping out of the bathroom reluctantly.

"Gajeel?" She called, sticking her head in through the opening nervously.

"_Vkrepr? He wants me to take my clothes off! What is wrong with him?! He is not my mate! I will not take my clothes off!_" Gajeel ranted while pacing back and forward along the length of the clay-tiled bathroom.

"_I know he wants you to take your clothes off, but that is so that you can_...'bathe'." She explained, gesturing to the half-filled bath.

"'Bathe'...'durka'." Gajeel nodded, frowning at her as he continued to pace.

"Okay, 'durka', I will remember that." She smiled reassuringly, stepping into the bathroom. "_Gray has brought you here so that you can bathe. He is also going to...cut your_ 'hair'." She continued, pulling at her own as she said 'hair', earning an angry snarl from him. "Gajeel?"

"Levy! Is everything okay?! I-"

"Everything is fine! I was just explaining what he was doing here. I will find out what made him angry, do not worry." Levy called, shutting the door between the bathroom and the bedroom. "_Gajeel, what is wrong? Why are you upset? It is nice to bathe_."

"_I will never let that-that-that weakling cut my _kuer!" He growled, the sound trying to rattle every bone in her body.

"_Gajeel, what- what does your hair mean?"_ Levy asked, trying to stay calm as she took a step towards him, raising her hand as if to touch him.

"_My hair? I am a Ragkiz! My hair is as important as my studs, Vkrepr! How dare you belittle it_!?" He snapped, glaring fiercely at her, his threat clear as his growl grew.

"_What is a 'Ragkiz'_!?" She exclaimed, her own anger beginning to surface. "_I was not 'belittling' your hair! I cannot understand its importance unless you explain - which you often refuse to do by the way! I know so little about your culture that you cannot expect me to always understand! _I cannot understand unless you explain, you rarm!"

"...Vkrepr...did you just...did you just carr me a '_jerk'_?" He replied, completely dumbfounded as he came to a complete standstill in the middle of the bathroom.

"Yes! Yes, I did! You are a complete rarm that thinks that he can get angry at me every time I do not understand his culture, even though he will not explain! You were surprised when Lucy kicked you yesterday, but look at yourself!" She snapped, glaring angrily at him.

"...Sorry, Vkrepr...I wirr exprain..." He mumbled, sitting down on the edge of the bath, careful not to fall in. "_I am Gajeel of the Ragkiz family. We are a hunting family and we have our own traditions. We have our studs to show that we are successful providers. The families all have different ways to show who they are and their pride in it. The royal family have dragon's scales tattooed on their necks and arms. The King's neck tattoos extend onto his face. My father has his two extra piercings on his forearms, as I will when I take my place as head of the family_."

"You are next in line in your family?" Levy gasped, staring at him in disbelief. "Then why do you stay?! Why do you not return home to your people?!"

"Vkrepr." He growled, back to his usual warning threat. "_If I return to my family without achieving my mission, my hair will be cut. In the Ragkiz family, that is the greatest shame. Having your hair cut means that you have failed. I cannot let your cousin cut my hair, as much as you ask me to – I could not return home if I did_."

"_I am sorry, Gajeel...I did not know_." She replied softly, sitting down next to him. "_Are you allowed to bathe_?"

"_Gihe, of course! We are not_ 'barbarians', _as your people insist_!" He mused, grinning down at her.

"_Do you have a word for_ 'barbarians'?" She asked, smiling back up at him.

"_No, we do not. All we know is your definition of it and that it is a serious insult to our people...We are taught it as children and told we are not allowed to retaliate if called it. Our elders explain to us that retaliation would prove to the human that said it that we are truly barbarians_." He explained sadly, looking down at his hands as he clenched them.

"_I know you are not a barbarian, Gajeel. I trust you, so if you say your people are not, then I shall believe you_." Levy soothed, running her hand gently down the scarred inside of his forearm, her fingers delicately trying to unfurl his fingers as her hand reached his.

"_They are not, Vkrepr...Thank you_." He muttered, unclenching his fist, allowing her to lay her tiny hand flat in his.

"_Gray will be wondering if you have killed me and ran_." She teased, bumping her shoulder into his arm.

"_I could not kill you, Vkrepr_." He reassured, closing his hand on hers carefully.

"I know, Gajeel." She smiled softly, leaning against him. "I should go get Gray, though. You need to bathe or Uncle will get angry and come here himself."

"_I will not take my clothes off in front of him – he is not family_." Gajeel growled, his expression hard and determined.

"_Does that mean you will take them off in front of me_?!" She teased, earning an impressive blush as she stood up from the side of the bath.

"_You are family...but I meant you are not my parents...or my male cousins..._" He frowned, looking away from her.

"There has to be a way around that problem..." She hummed, her head tilting slightly in confusion as his face grew brighter, almost matching his eyes. "You will not undress in front of Gray...Will you let him wash your hair?"

"_I will never trust him near my hair! He threatens to cut it off_!" Gajeel snarled, his body becoming tense again.

"Will you let me wash it?" She asked simply, looking him straight in the eye.

_"__...How? Do- Do you expect me to take my clothes off...in front of- of you_?" He questioned, shifting uncomfortably on the edge of the bath.

"No, I was thinking you could just get in the bath with your tunic on, then I could wash your hair. You could take your tunic off once I finish." She nodded, feeling pleased with herself.

"You do expect me to take my tunic off in front of you?" He asked in obvious bewilderment, staring up at her.

"No! No, em, I meant I will leave once I have washed your hair and then you can take your tunic off." She corrected, her cheeks flushing as the image of Gajeel stripping for her flashed through her mind again, this time from a wet tunic.

"I do not want you to leave me with your cousin. I do not trust him." Gajeel mumbled awkwardly, looking away from her.

"Then I will not. I will wait in the bedroom next door until you have finished bathing. I will not go far." She smiled reassuringly.

"Thank you, Vkrepr." He grunted, his eyes flicking up to hers before retreating to the seemingly interesting clay tiles that covered the floor.

"I will need to explain to Gray." She stated, smiling expectantly at him for a few moments in silence. "Gajeel...You need to let go of my hand..."

Gajeel released her hand instantly, snapping his own away. She giggled and turned to leave the bathroom, aware of his gaze following her. The more she understood him, the more amusingly adorable he became. He certainly was not a barbarian as everyone said, but truly a misunderstood boy, lost and alone in their world. He had come here on a mission that he could not tell anyone about and he was not even full-grown. _She_ – who had actually begun to understand – had almost allowed her cousin to do something unspeakable to him without even realising. Hopefully her cousin would accept her terms.

"Gray-"

"Is he ready to actually bathe?" Gray demanded, getting up from the sofa.

"Give me ten minutes – I am going to wash his hair and then he is going to bathe. Alone." She finished, holding her gaze against Gray.

"He cannot bathe alone." Gray returned, narrowing his eyes at her.

"That is the only way you will get him to take his tunic off. Would you take your clothes off in front of him?" She challenged, folding her arms across her chest.

"No, I would not." He sighed, frowning at the clean tunic on the bed. "Tell him to put this on after his bath – and leave the door open while you are in there! I did not like you shutting the door! He could have done anything to you!"

"As I have explained many times, Gajeel will not hurt me." She huffed, taking the new tunic and walking back into the bathroom.

She began to laugh as she spotted Gajeel sitting in the bath, his back to her. He turned his head slightly to look at her out the corner of his eye, his ears a perfect shade of crimson. They matched the tint of what she could see of his cheeks perfectly. She inhaled in surprise as she noticed his naked shoulders, her eyes instantly searching the bathroom around her. She slowly approached the bath, holding her breath, unsure what she would find when she got there. She giggled as she found his tunic, earning a glare from the giant as he sat naked, covering himself with the rag that had been his previous tunic.

"Very clever, Gajeel." She mused, kneeling down on the floor behind him. "I will need you to sit forward slightly so that I can get to your hair, though."

"Rkuraxar, Vkrepr." He grunted, leaning forward, the sound of water sloshing reaching her ears as the water rushed in behind him under his thick mane.

"You are to put on this clean tunic once you are dried. You dry yourself with a towel." She explained, pointing up to the shelf that would have been at her head height had she been standing. "And do not forget to use the soap while you are bathing! And do not answer me with 'whatever' again – do not deny you just did!"

"Yes, Vkrepr." He mumbled, sitting quietly as she began to drench his hair with bowls of water.


	22. Chapter 22

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

**Hey, this a bit of a rushed update today! So glad so many of you enjoyed Monday's chapter! The other updates for today will be up within the next 24hrs, but my mother is currently breathing down my neck. I'm supposed to be helping her with a project, but we only have limited time :P I've spent the rest of my time working on the sketch for Miss Quiet Winter for writing the 175th review! I don't think any of my previous sketches have taken so long! Please go have a look! It's on my Tumblr at the moment (sketcher1994), but will be on my Facebook account later too! It is actually a sketch for this story! ^_^ Anyway, please enjoy this chapter!**

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**Chapter Twenty-Two**

Levy gasped, staring in wonder, at the capital of Fiore, Crocus. After two weeks of travelling they had finally made it. If there was anything more spectacular in this world, she could not imagine it. Its streets were as clean as Gajeel's courtyard and its houses as fancy as her uncle's had once been. Magnolia may be beautiful with its many flowers growing up from the dusty ground, but this place was magnificent. She could understand why people travelled for miles to come see this city. She happily watched the streets move past them, their people smiling and talking amongst themselves. She waved as a few of the people pointed at her uncle's carriage. She had been surprised to see it had been polished – apparently Gajeel's handiwork while she had been sleeping.

She felt Lucy pull at her arm and turned to look at her, smiling excitedly. She found her cousin practically leaning out of the window, pointing towards a tall, ornamental building in what Levy assumed was the centre of the city. It had to be the palace. A building that impressive had to be the palace of the King of Fiore. What was he like? Her aunt did not approve of him and he was apparently planning to force Gray into marrying his granddaughter, but perhaps he was not a bad man? Maybe he just had a lot of faith in her uncle and believed that Gray was the best thing for his granddaughter and his people?

"We are almost there, so please compose yourselves, girls." Her uncle sighed wearily.

"What do we do when we arrive?" Lucy asked, not turning her attention away from the palace.

"The usual protocol that you follow when you come to one of my official dinners." He replied, clearing his throat as he remembered that Levy had not been to one. "I will introduce us and then we will be lead somewhere to wait. I assume the barbarian will just follow you, Levy?"

"He will be unsure of his bearings and as I am the only one he knows will understand him, he will definitely most likely follow." She answered, hoping that he did not pick up on her not-exactly-certain answer. "What will we be waiting on?"

"Glad to hear it. We will not have time for you to explain every little thing to him. You may get a chance while we are waiting to be ordered in front of the King, if you are lucky." He explained sternly, watching her closely.

"Gajeel and I will be presented to the King?!" She exclaimed, dismay washing over her. "I am not sure-"

"Why did you think you were coming?! The King wishes to meet you and the barbarian that you have tamed! He has one of his own and he wishes you to speak to it. You will likely be taken elsewhere once you have proved that you can converse with our barbarian easily in both languages." He snapped, glaring at her.

Levy leant back against the seat, straightening her back as she heard a growl from behind her. Gajeel had been made to ride on the back of the carriage all the way from her uncle's estate and he was likely to be particularly grumpy. He had had his hair washed, then had to bathe himself and put on a clean tunic, only for Levy to reappear with a brush. There had been a few harsh words uttered when she had started brushing the mass of oil black hair. She had thoroughly failed to get the vast majority of the knots out, but it did look much tidier...or slightly smoother on the outside; it was still one massive, long clump of tangled hair on the inside. She could not imagine how long it would be if it was thoroughly brushed out.

Sadly, he had then been forced onto the back of the carriage – hopefully all her hard work would not be undone.

Levy felt herself lurch forward as the carriage came to a standstill, her uncle yelling loudly at the hired driver. He would not have his horse treated like that! Coco would cringe at such treatment of the beautiful bay. Lucy took Levy's hand as Levy's uncle opened the carriage door, stepping down onto the beautifully paved road. Lucy moved past her and pulled Levy gently after her. She stepped down, not letting go of Lucy's hand. She gaped up at the polished white walls of the palace, before suddenly remembering herself. She spun around, looking for Gajeel, spotting him growling angrily at the driver, the driver cowering in return.

"Gajeel, leave the driver; you can tell him off later for his ill treatment of Uncle's horse." She called, earning an obedient nod, which gained a surprised gasp from one of the King's guards in return.

"This way, please." A thin man with a moustache bowed, standing again to be about five and a half foot tall.

Levy and Lucy followed after her uncle, Gajeel walking a respectful distance behind them. They walked in through the giant doors, the carved marble of the archway catching her eye. She heard Gajeel snort in disgust behind her. She frowned in annoyance, earning her a sly elbow to her side from Lucy. Levy checked herself, returning a bright smile to her lips. She could not let Gajeel embarrass her, not here. He should not even tease her at home, never mind make a fool of her at the royal palace!

"If you will wait here for a moment, I will inform the King of your arrival." The man bowed, quickly scurrying out of the room they had just entered.

"Levy, take this chance to explain the situation to the barbarian." Her uncle ordered, turning his attention to explaining the various tapestries to her cousin who gave her a quick apologetic smile.

"_I can put your uncle in his place, if you wish_." Gajeel muttered, throwing a death-threatening glare at her uncle.

"_No, no! That is a very bad idea, Gajeel! You must never suggest that, please! I do have to explain what is going on to you, or we will all end up as you would if you returned home without your hair_." Levy explained, resisting the urge to reach out to touch his arm reassuringly.

_"__This is very serious then? I guess that explains you demanding that I bathe and put on this new tunic – it is too small, Vkrepr_." He complained, tensing his muscles under the straining material. "_That is how I managed to rip the last one. Can you not make bigger clothes_?"

"_I will personally make you a new one when we get home, but you must behave while you are here_." She sighed, rolling her eyes at him. "_We are about to be introduced to the King and I am to show him that I can converse easily with you in both our languages_."

"_You would really do that for me_?" He frowned, looking back into her eyes searchingly.

"Of course. Now will you behave?" She puffed, folding her arms in front of her chest.

"Yes, Vkrepr. I wirr behave." He replied, seemingly stopping himself from ruffling her hair as he shot a quick glance over at her uncle. "_I will not hurt your uncle and I will let you know if I have to leave_."

"_Leave? Gajeel? What do you mean 'leave'? You cannot just leave when you are in the presence of the King! You must be dismissed_!" She explained, horrified at the thought of what could happen if he tried to just walk out of the throne room.

"You must understand, Vkrepr." He whispered hoarsely into her ear as he leant forward, snapping back upright with a nod.

"I-"

"The King is ready to see you now." The man called as he reappeared.

Levy smiled reassuringly at her uncle, before directing the same smile to Gajeel. She walked up to the door, taking her place beside her cousin. She could feel Gajeel only a meter behind her, a defensive air radiating off of him. He was ready to defend himself, or them, if he needed to. It was mildly reassuring, but she needed him to stay calm, not alert and ready to fight. They were safe here, but he clearly did not feel it.

"General! Thank you for accepting my summons!" A voice boomed across the giant hall as they stepped through another giant marble arch. "I see you managed to bring your beautiful daughter and your niece! Your Dragon-man leaves much to be desired though, I must say! He is positively tiny!"

"'Dragon-man', Your Highness?" Her uncle queried, walking calmly along the red carpet towards the large, carved, gold throne at the top of the steps at the far end of the gigantic hall.

"Yes! Your man-servant! I have a Dragon-man just like him! Only _mine_ is much larger!" The King guffawed, making light of Gajeel. "He is certainly much taller than yours, not to mention his arms are the size of tree trunks! His hair is much more beautiful! Yours has, eh, _black_ hair, but mine has a wonderful head of long _silver_ hair! A far superior specimen, do you not think?"

"I have not seen your Dragon-man since I captured him three years ago, Your Highness." Her uncle replied almost too pleasantly. "I trust he has not changed much under your care?"

"I have him fight for the entertainment of the people once a week – it keeps him strong! He has not lost any of that strength that you brought him with, but he has lost his fire! He is a broken man, if I say so myself!" The King boasted, making Levy silently gag. "He looks after my exotic animals the rest of the week. He is strangely good with them – even my white Bengal Tiger cowards from him!"

"Exotic...animals...?" Levy uttered, earning a glare from her uncle over his shoulder.

"Is your niece interested in animals?" The King called loudly, even though they now stood at the bottom of the steps. "I suppose she must be to have taken an interest in your Dragon-man! I see yours has the same dragon-like eyes as mine, as every Dragon-man should have, but yours has eyes the colour of blood! Marvellous! Mine has eyes the colour of ice! It matches his cold, heartless nature, but then I should have to hope that yours is a bloodthirsty beast!?"

"He certainly has plenty of fire in him – maybe he could melt the ice of your Dragon-man?!" Her uncle joked, a friendly smile across his lips.

"That would certainly be interesting! Perhaps we could have them fight at dinner tomorrow night?! I bet that would prove to be wonderful entertainment!" The King cheered, running his eyes over Gajeel, who was standing tense behind Levy, the thick air around him stating to Levy that he was suppressing a growl.

"Your Highness, he does not fight." Levy explained, directing her gaze towards the King.

"Levy!" Her uncle barked, making Gajeel flinch.

"Uncle, he does not fight! I will not let him! You cannot encourage him to fight if you expect us to be safe with him guarding us while you and Gray are away from home! You should not encourage him to challenge us!" She argued, slyly gesturing behind her back to tell Gajeel to back off.

"Levy, if the King wishes him to fight, then he will fight." Her uncle growled, angry at the humiliation she was causing him.

"Ah, so your Dragon-man is a guard dog! I can understand the girl's fears, but if she has as much control over him as she seems, then she shall have no challenge from him. I believe she just ordered him to back down." The King mused, watching her carefully.

"What?" Her uncle asked, looking her over.

"She used her body language to tell him to back off, rather than let him defend her from your threat. I believe he may be more _her_ Dragon-man than _yours_." The King explained, still studying her. "He may be tamed to the point of not needing shackles, but his first priority is to protect your niece, not follow your orders-"

"You have things you shourd not." Gajeel called out, startling Levy as he cut the King off.

"So he does speak our language!" The King exclaimed happily. "Well, if you would like to demonstrate, young lady, I will allow him to voice his accusations? I am not sure as to what he is referring, but knowing that he can make his thoughts clear would be helpful."

"Yes, Your Highness." Levy replied, respectfully bowing her head, glancing back at Gajeel worriedly.

Was he really here to fight?


	23. Chapter 23

**AN: Hiro Mashima owns Fairy Tail!**

**Hey! Sorry this is late! My mum had me busy doing various bits of DIY all day yesterday! I've been a bit under the weather since I got back from my sudden trip away last weekend, so there hasn't been any updates in the last week, sorry! Thank you to everyone favouriting/following/reading/reviewing this! It really does keep us going! Can we give _MakeItHale_ a huge thank you, please? She's been really busy lately and she's still BETAing this every chance she gets! She also gives me a nudge every time I get stuck! If it wasn't for her, we wouldn't have this chapter here right now! So thank you! And I hope everyone enjoys this latest chapter! ^_^**

**(The required updates are finally done to ****Rovr u nerrna viparketh et rka nuthouha ik Gajiru! Sorry about that!)**

* * *

**Chapter Twenty-Three**

"You have things you shourd not." Gajeel called out, startling Levy as he cut the King off.

"So he does speak our language!" The King exclaimed happily. "Well, if you would like to demonstrate, young lady, I will allow him to voice his accusations? I am not sure as to what he is referring, but knowing that he can make his thoughts clear would be helpful."

"Yes, Your Highness." Levy replied, respectfully bowing her head, glancing back at Gajeel worriedly.

Was he really here to fight?

"Perhaps you could ask him if he knows anything of my Dragon-man in his own language and then, afterwards, translate to us? Then of course, have him tell us in his own words – that is fair, is it not?" The King inquired, an obviously fake smile directed at her.

"Of course, Your Highness." Levy replied, curtseying, before turning to Gajeel. "_Gajeel, please behave, you should not have spoken out like that_." She began, forcing herself to keep her voice completely neutral. "_He has asked me to question you on the male he has that is like you_."

"_I understood him, Vkrepr_." He replied, both his voice and face completely expressionless. "_I know the male he speaks of_."

"_Will you tell me anything about him that I can explain to the King? It is the only way that he will hear you out_." She explained, trying to maintain a calm exterior.

"_He has piercings just like mine, but he has a third on his bottom lip and five on each of his forearms_." Gajeel grunted, glaring up at the King.

"_He is you father_!" Levy gasped, suddenly snapping herself back to her emotionless state as she tried to catch herself.

"What has he just told you?!" The King demanded, sounding impatient with the constant talking, none of which he could understand.

"I can describe the male's piercings? Does that count?" Levy queried, turning to face the King.

"I assume you mean any piercings that could potentially be found on my Dragon-man, rather than yours?" He challenged, narrowing his dark, jade eyes at her.

"Of course, Your Highness." Levy smiled sweetly, before gesturing to Gajeel. "His piercings are as seen on 'my uncle's'; however, 'yours' has three additional piercings. He has an additional one on his lip and two more on his forearms, giving him a total of thirty-two."

"Dragon-man, do you agree?!" The King barked, earning a quiet growl from Gajeel. "Can you demonstrate what she has just told me?"

"Her name is Revy." He grunted, glaring threateningly at the King, Levy failing to reprimand him as she stared at him in shock. "There is a ring that ries above where the two on my rip are; it roops back between his rips. Many mares grumbre about it because it gets in the way. There is one additionar stud on each forearm, above where mine are. It is the sign that he is strong and highry respected amongst my people – you courd not hold him here against his wirr. _You will not live_."

"_Levy_, what was that last bit he said? He has a rather venomous expression, but his words are rather amusing. My Dragon-man is yet to escape and I can guarantee that he never will. He could not make it safely out of this palace." The King laughed, making light of Gajeel once more. "So, please, translate, or have it say it itself if it is too rude for your angelic lips to utter."

"_Do not speak to Vkrepr with such mocking_!" Gajeel snarled, making the guards that lined the hall take a step forward, gaining Levy's notice.

"I am afraid that he said 'you will not live' and now he has just said 'do not speak to Vikreper with such mocking'." Levy explained quietly, biting her lip as she fought the urge to step back, to feel his reassuring mass against her.

"There is a word that you did not translate there? Is that a gap in your knowledge?" The King questioned, the mocking tone clear in his voice, seemingly encouraging Gajeel.

"That is what he calls me, but we do not seem to have a word for it." Levy explained, bowing her head slightly, holding her breath.

"Ah, I assume it must be something along the lines of 'mistress'." He replied thoughtfully, rubbing his chin. "Fine, I will allow him to voice his accusations."

"Your Highness, you should not indulge him." Levy's uncle offered, stepping towards the King.

"Nonsense, General! He is nothing but a barbaric Dragon-man that your niece has turned into a pet! He will do nothing! He will do exactly as his 'Vekrepper' orders, is that not so?!"

"_Fool_." Gajeel muttered, glancing at Levy, earning a nod to continue. "You have things that do not berong to you."

"You have already said that – can you say nothing else?!" The King moaned, clearly bored already.

"I say it because it is true." Gajeel stated, trying to keep his calm. "You have captured something important and plan to use it against Bosco. I cannot ret you do that and neither wirr the mare you have captured. The moment that he discovers what you have done is the moment that you die."

"So, my suspicions were correct – your people are Boscan! I thought so! I have a nice little hunch as to which _part_ of Bosco too; that is the very reason I summoned your Master here! As to your pathetic belief that my Dragon-man is capable of killing me, if you saw the broken man he is now, you would not be saying such foolish things!" The King laughed, making Levy grab Gajeel's wrist, squeezing it lightly to give him strength to not prove himself to be a barbarian.

"You cannot hold one of my peopre against their wirr and if he discovers that you have taken my friend he wirr be angry. She has done nothing wrong and I wirr not arrow you to punish her for her position in her country!" He snapped, restraining himself as Levy's grasp requested of him.

"I assume you are referring to the Princess of Bosco? She is a very interesting young woman and likely to do just as interesting a job of running Bosco when her father passes." The King replied thoughtfully as he studied his fingernails. "You say she is your friend? Do you speak to many of her people? Or do you normally keep to your own? I cannot understand how you would even cross paths with her?"

"Ret her go." Gajeel growled, the sound beginning in his throat, slowly moving towards his chest.

"Gajeel, we must understand the situation more. Perhaps she is here of her own free will, as you suggested that the other male must be?" Levy suggested emotionlessly, squeezing his wrist a little tighter, stopping his growl from completing.

"Yes, I am sure His Highness would not hold another country's Princess against her will? Perhaps she is visiting our Princess, as we are?" Lucy added, smiling happily up at the giant.

"Why do I not introduce my granddaughter at this very moment!? Hisui! Come meet the family of the young man I was telling you of!" He called behind him.

A door to his left opened to reveal a tall, beautiful young woman of about their own age. She had long, flowing, jade green hair that looked softer than the fur of the best kept rabbit. Her eyes were the same shade, matching those of the King, but hers were much softer, kinder even, in their expression. She held herself proud as she approached her grandfather's throne, stopping just short of it. A tall man, coated in shining silver armour, appeared by her side, watching them warily as they stood looking up at the Princess of Fiore.

"This is my granddaughter, Princess Hisui, the jewel of my crown." He began, running his eyes over her proudly. "Her father is my heir and, after him, it shall fall to her and her husband to rule my country. The blonde young lady is the eldest of Gray's three younger sisters, Lucy. The blue haired girl next to her is his cousin, Levy, who is his mother's brother's orphan. The Dragon-man behind her is her pet."

"She is an orphan yet she has a Dragon-man as a pet?" The Princess mused, looking down her nose at them.

"Interesting, is it not?" The King returned, smirking down at Levy. "Why do you not show them around the palace? The girl has already expressed an interest in my exotic animals and we cannot have her pet hearing too much of my plans."

"Yes, Grandfather." The Princess replied, bowing her head slightly before descending the steps towards them, the armoured man directly behind her. "Come with me."

Levy and Lucy glanced at each over, sharing a look of disgust and annoyance before following after the Princess, Gajeel following Levy, his attention on the knight. Gray was expected to marry this girl?! Even if they did not have a say, surely if they could try to persuade the right people, he would be saved from such a cruel fate? At least Captain Loke was kind and a gentleman to the core. He would never utter a harsh word to a woman, but this girl seemed repulsively proud. Gray could, of course, try to put her in her place, but would he get away with that?

"I am so sorry about that!" The Princess burst out the second that the doors to the throne room were closed behind her.

"Wh-What?" Levy and Lucy stammered together, staring at the Princess in disbelief.

"I honestly do not like having to act like that, but I must! Father is the same! He is such a friendly, cheerful man, but we must both act proud and unfeeling in front of my Grandfather!" The Princess explained apologetically, looking between the two of them.

"Princess-"

"Please, call me Hisui!" She interrupted, smiling at Lucy.

"Hisui...I-I am not sure what to say...but I think I may understand..." Lucy replied awkwardly, biting her lip.

"Lucy is expected to marry Captain Loke, but she has feelings for our childhood friend...When the Captain is at my uncle's estate, Lucy must act indifferent to our friend; she must hide how she truly feels." Levy explained sadly, looking between Lucy and Hisui, checking that she had not said too much.

"I am very sorry..." Hisui whispered, almost as if she were afraid to be overheard.

"It is fine, really! Captain Loke is charming and I am sure he will make me happy! I will learn to love him and I will forget my heart's foolish thoughts." Lucy smiled reassuringly, laying her hand on Hisui's arm. "You are in a very similar position, but at least I have met my suitor! My brother is kind, so you have nothing to fear."

"Thank you." Hisui replied gratefully, giving Lucy a genuine smile before turning to Levy. "Are you set to be married?"

"M-Me?! No! I-I am not..." She blushed, looking away from the Princess' gaze.

"Levy is embarrassed because-"

"Lucy!" Levy cut in, glaring warningly at her best friend, daring her to tease her about liking Gajeel in front of the Princess and the giant himself.

"-she has turned down two suitors already and we are being forced to marry as our elders choose. She has less responsibility as she has been left only books by her parents. She feels unnecessary guilt at not marrying those presented to her – the longer she puts it off, the longer I get to remain with my family though. I am very happy that she refuses to marry someone that she does not love." Lucy finished, looking at Levy with adoration.

"You are the elder?" Hisui asked, clearly surprised as Levy nodded. "Is there anyone you do love? Or are you still searching?"

"Vkrepr?" Gajeel grunted, clearly getting frustrated.

"I forgot about your Dragon-man!" Hisui exclaimed, looking up at him apologetically. "He was getting rather agitated in the throne room – were his threats serious? I promise I will not tell my grandfather if they were! He would not believe me anyway!"

"He was serious and he has very good reason, sadly." Levy sighed, turning to look up at Gajeel sorrowfully.

"_Vkrepr, what is wrong? You look unhappy? I will not leave yet, I promise_." He mumbled, gazing back down at her.

"I think I understand." Hisui stated, earning a nod of confirmation from Lucy as they watched Levy and Gajeel.

"_I am fine, Gajeel; I was just concerned that you were going to get yourself hurt_." She replied, laying a hand on his arm reassuringly. "Hisui, where did your grandfather get 'Dragon-man' from?"

"Oh, I was young when the name was created, but I believe it was about ten years ago. A male broke into the military fort near the western Fiorian mountains. He had dragon scales tattooed across most of his upper body according to my father!" She explained, giving off an air of excitement.

"Gajeel?" She uttered in horror, watching as a darkness took over his beautiful, perfectly cut rubies.


	24. Chapter 24

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

**Hello everyone! I'm proud to say that the cover pic is ****_finally_**** up! My phone just wasn't picking up the detail (or you would have at least gotten the lineart by now :P ), so I bought a printer/scanner and uploaded it to my laptop that way! XD Hope you like it! ^_^ Thank you so much to everyone favouriting/following/liking/reading/reblogging/reviewing this! I actually sat and read through all the reviews again the other night and went to sleep with a huge grin! I love how much everyone's getting into this! ^_^ As always, a HUGE thank you to _MakeItHale_ for BETAing this! The story wouldn't be the same without you!**

**_MakeItHale_ and I would like to dedicate this chapter to the Gajevy Queen, Rboz! Rboz , thank you! You have had my friends and I fangirling for several days now! XD Hope you like this chapter! ^_^**

**Now, I hope everyone enjoys this chapter! ^_^**

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**Chapter Twenty-Four**

"Hisui, is there somewhere I can take Gajeel? There are too many people and it is unsettling him." Levy requested. She squeezed Gajeel's arm, silently demanding him to not say anything.

"I shall take you to see the exotic animals, as you requested? Does he like animals?" Hisui questioned, sounding mildly unsure as she sensed a change that she could not understand.

"Yes, he likes them very much! That would be perfect! Which way are they?" Levy inquired, looking around her, silently refusing to release the pressure on Gajeel's arm.

"This way." Hisui replied, frowning slightly as Levy smiled reassuringly at her.

"Perhaps you could show me the gardens once you have delivered Levy and Gajeel to observe the animals?" Lucy suggested, grabbing Hisui's attention, earning a grateful glance from Levy.

"Will she be alright there alone with him?" She asked, glancing worriedly between Levy and her giant barbarian.

"I thought you said you understood?" Lucy winked, earning a mild blush from Hisui before a nod of agreement.

"Do they-"

"Who knows?" Lucy answered mysteriously, smirking over at Levy.

Levy followed after Lucy and the Princess, sliding her hand down Gajeel's wrist to wrap around his clenched fist. She felt it relax under her touch, shifting to hold hers awkwardly. He lightly squeezed it, reassuring her in turn. She smiled up at him as he stared straight ahead, refusing to look down at her. She bumped him with her shoulder and he released her hand, turning his head away from her. She shook her head at him, suddenly hearing a cough from behind her. She smiled back over her shoulder at the knight, resisting the urge to blush at having been caught letting Gajeel hold her hand. She had to comfort him somehow.

She wandered in through heavy wooden doors. Hisui paused just inside and gestured around her proudly. Levy let her eyes travel as they wished, looking along what appeared to form a maze of corridors, steel bars at intervals along their blank stone walls. This place was nothing in comparison to the perfectly carved marble of the main palace; the rough, blank walls apparently leaving it to their inhabitants to woo their visitors. Levy walked up to the first exhibit in silence. She stared in disbelief as a gorilla looked back at her almost questioningly. It suddenly began shuffling back nervously, watching something behind her. She turned her head slowly to see what it was looking at, sighing with relief to find it was only Gajeel.

"_You seem to have scared it_." She mused, pushing against his solid, unmoving chest.

"I shall leave the two of you here and take Lucy to view the gardens." Hisui stated, smiling almost knowingly at them. "We will return to look for you in an hour – I assume that is long enough for the two of you to conduct your business unobserved?"

"I am sure that will be long enough." Levy replied, trying to hide her confusion at the Princess' words behind a calm demeanour.

She watched as Lucy and Hisui retreated back out of the door, closing it behind them, taking the knight with them.

"_Gajeel, what is going on_?" She demanded, turning to look up at him the second that they were gone.

"_Where shall I start, Vkrepr_?!" He snapped, glaring down at her. "_What makes you think that I can explain things to you now?! I thought you understood_!"

"_I do understand! But there are some things that you have to confirm! You have told me nothing about a 'Princess of Bosco', who seems to be a close friend of yours! You did not tell me that the King was holding your father! And you did not tell me anything about a member of your royal family coming here ten years ago and attacking a fort_!" She exclaimed, pushing him with both her hands.

"_She is the one trying to protect our people from outsiders...She found us when we were catching Vkrepr one summer_." He sighed, watching her carefully. "..._I was still young and did not understand that talking to small, blue-haired girls was a bad thing. I still do not believe it is_." He smirked, ruffling her hair before becoming serious again. "_She is trying to make a law that protects us, but we do not really consider ourselves as needing protection. Anyway, when I learned of her kidnap, I told my mother. My people respect the Princess and like her, but they do not always understand everything she says to them...neither do I...I only understand the little Boscan that my father taught me_."

"_So what did your mother say_?" Levy asked, trying to encourage him to continue, ignoring the urge to ask what he meant by 'catching Vkrepr'.

"_She said that the only one respected enough to call our people to her defence, in our King's absence, was my father_." He sighed, earning a nod of understanding from Levy.

"_But he has been missing for a while now and so you came here, to Fiore, looking for him. Your mission is to find your father so that he can call upon your people to rescue the_ _Princess of Bosco_..." She whispered, gazing up into his shimmering rubies, understanding the pain that hardened them. "_You stayed because you did not know where to start looking for your father...Gajeel, I am so sorry! My uncle had told me about another male like you, but I completely forgot to mention him to you! I am so sorry! You could have come searching for him moons ago_!"

"_Vkrepr, do not apologise. I would not give up these past two moons with you for the sake of getting here a moon earlier. You have taught me to speak your language and done me the honour of trusting me, of learning my language from me. You trusted me with your life and now you have delivered me to my father_." He smiled softly down at her, cupping her face gently as she looked up at him in confusion. "_Your King told your uncle that my father looks after these animals. The response of the _hirennu_ confirms that – he was not afraid of me, but recognised my father in my appearance. My father has worked with these animals – he is here, Vkrepr_."

"_What are you going to do_?" She whispered, laying her hand on top of the rough one that cupped her cheek.

"_I must find my father and explain what has happened...Vkrepr...This may be goodbye. I do not know if he will choose to leave now, but if he does...I must go with him_." Gajeel sighed, resting his forehead against hers. "Thank you for becoming my famiry."

"I do not want you to leave, Gajeel." She mumbled quietly, feeling his thumb stroke her cheek.

"I must go now, but I may yet return." He whispered back, breaking away from her to run along one of the corridors, leaving her behind, still unable to accept what was happening.

Levy blinked, looking around her, her hand still on her cheek. She could feel the path of old tears damp on her smooth, pale skin, reminding her that the rough, tanned hand of the giant male servant had really existed. She sighed, turning to walk along a corridor, knowing that he really was gone. She would have to explain that he had run off when Lucy and Hisui came back for her, but until then, she just wanted to get lost in this maze of animals. She wanted forget the pain aching in her chest, forget the man that had just thanked her for becoming family and then run away from her. She was nothing more than an orphan and he, who was a strong male from a world miles away from her own, had welcomed her as family.

She sniffed, blindly turning corners as she tried to forget the male servant. She cursed Lucy for having teased her, for making her think about her feelings for the giant. She silently thanked her best friend, glad that she had had that chance to be held protectively in his arms one last time. Levy mentally thanked her again for giving her this chance to truly be alone with him. She whispered one inaudible curse, wishing that this moment alone had not happened. Even if he would never return her feelings, he had genuinely cared about her. He had felt guilty for leaving her, but he had done it anyway. She would never have another moment like that.

She slowed, stopping outside of an enclosure, something catching her eye. She turned to look into it, the big cat inside getting to its feet slowly as it watched her every movement. Its white fur rippled as it moved, causing the black stripes that cut across the snow-like coat to fracture and reform. She stared into its ice-blue eyes, watching as their black slits focused on her. She could not look away as a growl started to grow from within its depths. It seemed to adjust its focus, those all-knowing slits beginning to look through her. She watched, starting to feel slightly unnerved as it began to back off, its growl turning more to a whine.

She remembered the gorilla's reaction to Gajeel earlier, suddenly spinning in her joy. She froze, her eyes meeting with true, sparking, cold ice. She could not move as his clenched hand came towards her, something glinting in it. She could not breathe as she stared up into those icy pools as they demanded her death. She could not help but watch unblinkingly as the silver-haired male attempted to end everything. As death glared down upon her, her thoughts focused on the same object it had been for some time now:

"_Gajeel_."

"_Vkrepr_!" A grunt escaped from in front of her. "_Run_!"

Levy opened her eyes, wondering at what moment she had closed them. She was staring at what could only be described as a clouded sky on a dark, moonless night. She reached out, her hand brushing against hair, confusing her even more. She gripped onto the hair, feeling the knots within its depths. She looked up, seeing Gajeel straining against a silver-haired male the size of one and a half Gajeels. She gasped as she saw his arms shaking, recognising the strain etched into his muscles, his hands clutching desperately at those of the other male.

"_Run_!" Gajeel ordered, his feet slipping back slightly. "_Do not do this, please_!"

Levy stepped back, finding her back up against the iron bars. What way should she go? She had no idea how she had got here. If she did not find her way out, if Gajeel did lose...would they both die before she could get help for him? Could anyone help him? No man in this palace was a challenge to Gajeel, so how could they pose a threat to a male that was larger and stronger than him? It just was not fair! How many 'Dragon-men' did the King have?! Why could he not have made sure he truly had control over the first before getting another?! Perhaps she could find Gajeel's-

"_Gajeel_...?"

"_Yes_..." Gajeel panted, the strain leaving his muscles.

"_How did they get you?! You are still a boy! You should still be with the others! Did they attack our people?! I cannot understand how they could capture you_!?" The silver-haired male rushed, almost too fast for Levy to understand.

"_I came looking for you_." Gajeel explained, looking behind him before sidestepping and falling back against the iron bars by Levy's side.

"Who your?" The strange male snarled, glaring at Levy.

"_It is_ 'who are you' _and_ _this is Levy. She is my family and she helped find you_." Gajeel grunted, tensing his body threateningly.

"_Do not challenge me, boy! I can see you do not have all your piercings yet, so why did you come looking for me?! You should not have a single piercing yet_!" The male growled, turning his attention back to Gajeel.

"_I am eighteen winters – almost nineteen! I am a grown male and I only have one more to earn! I came looking for you because I had to, not because I wanted to_!" Gajeel returned, pulling himself back up to his full height.

"_Gajeel, what is going on_?" Levy asked desperately, unsure of why the two were arguing.

"_You taught her our language_?!" The silver-haired male snarled, baring his razor-like teeth at her.

"_She is family_!" Gajeel exclaimed, his own snarl echoing throughout the corridors.

"There his is!"


	25. Chapter 25

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

**Hey! If you're wondering why this is _four hours_ early, thank the people of Tumblr. I made a jokey post that I honestly didn't think would get so many notes! This is me keeping my promise to update early. How early was determined by the number of notes! XD So, thank you so much for favouriting/following/liking/reading/reblogging/reviewing! I'll let you down off the cliff now! XD Thank you so much to _MakeItHale_ for doing such a wonderful job of BETAing this and dealing with my half-asleep mumblings! XD**

**Please enjoy this latest chapter! ^_^ **(_Rovr u nerrna viparketh et rka nuthouha ik Gajiru_ has of course been updated again! ^_^ )

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**Chapter Twenty-Five**

"There he is!"

"_The guards have realised I have broken loose_." The male grunted, looking down a corridor at the men running towards them. "_Leave her here – we must leave, now_!"

"Vkrepr, I-"

"_I am coming with you! I told you that I would always help you, so let me_!" She argued, yelping in surprise as he grabbed her wrist, pulling her after him.

"_I told you to leave her! Will you never do as you are told_!?" The male snapped, glaring back at Gajeel as they dashed along corridors, seemingly at random. "_Leave her or pick her up! She is slowing us down_!"

"_Vkrepr, sorry_!" He mumbled, hauling on her wrist hard enough to pull her off of the ground, causing her to cry out in pain. "_The pain will pass, but I am sorry, Vkrepr_." He grumbled, not sounding particularly apologetic as she landed against his back, his hair making a surprisingly soft landing. "_Hold on_." He grunted, letting go of her wrist.

She held on desperately as the two males suddenly picked up speed, using their long legs to their full advantage as they raced through the corridors, almost instantly reaching the doors that lead into the main palace. She braced herself as the larger male forced his way through the two guards that had positioned themselves in front of the doors to stop them. The men were knocked out the way, imitating loose paper caught in a draught. She heard the doors splinter as the giant male forced his way through them, releasing himself into the main palace.

Levy glanced up over Gajeel's shoulder. Suddenly, Gajeel's hands reached back and clutched at her sides roughly, making her call out as she felt him threaten to snap her ribs like the neck of a chicken. She unscrewed her eyes as the pain slowly faded, just as a blur of yellow, green, and silver rushed past them. Why had Gajeel suddenly decided to hurt her? It did not make sense! Perhaps she had been right to question if the Gajeel she knew was the real Gajeel, or if he was just a facade made to catch her off guard? This definitely was not her Gajeel. Her Gajeel would never try to hurt her as this one did.

"_Which way_?" Gajeel growled, coming to a complete standstill, his head snapping from street to street as Levy suddenly became aware that they were outside.

"_This way_." The larger male nodded, the two suddenly taking off again, Levy's world becoming a blur once more.

She felt herself being lowered gently; her sandaled feet brushing against something soft. She sleepily opened her eyes, yawning, as she released whatever she had been clinging to. She tried to flex her fingers, crying out in pain as her left wrist screamed at her. What had she done to it?! Her fingers ached, but that did not even matter! What had happened to her wrist?! A large, tanned and scarred hand encircled her wrist carefully, turning her arm gently. She followed the studded arm, her memories of that evening flooding her mind as her gaze met Gajeel's concerned face. She pulled back, stumbling on the surprisingly pliable surface. She glanced down, realising she was standing on a bed that had been covered by a dust sheet.

"_Vkrepr...I had to...It had to be believable...I really am sorry_." Gajeel frowned, trying to take hold of her wrist again gently. Levy snapped her arm out of his reach and held it close against her chest, trying to ignore the throbbing pain.

"_You say she is family and yet she looks back at you with terror_." The larger male mused, collapsing onto a covered chair, making himself comfortable. "_She should be the one on the floor for the night, not the one on the bed_."

"_He surprised me...He has never hurt me before...I knew he could, but I let myself believe that he never would_." She replied quietly, unsure if the strange male could even hear her.

"_I assume you are referring to physical pain, or was that suffering you were showing caused by someone else_?" He challenged, narrowing his eyes at her.

"_Who hurt you, Vkrepr?! I will make them pay dearly for it_!" Gajeel snarled, reaching for her again.

"'_Vkrepr'? I thought you said her name was 'Levy'? If 'Vkrepr' is your name for her...I do not know what to say_." The male scoffed, turning his attention to Gajeel. "_And it was you who hurt her, you fool of a boy!_"

"_I am not a boy_." Gajeel huffed, searching Levy's eyes for something, gently taking her wrist from her clutches. "_I did not want to hurt you, Vkrepr_."

"_You truly named her after a tiny creature of the water? I suppose that is fitting. Is she also only of use to us in summer_?" The older male smirked, watching them closely.

"_She is small and her hair is like the ripples in the river while we watch for Vkrepr...I also met her in summer and I did catch her_." He explained, a note of amusement entering his voice as he finished. "_She fell when she was trying to get a_ 'book' _and I caught her_, _gihe_!" He grinned as her cheeks began to heat. "_Does this hurt_?" He continued, gently flexing her wrist, earning a grimace from her.

"_Definitely very fitting_." The older male snorted, closing his eyes. "_You know that you cannot keep her_?"

"_I know, but I do not want to leave her yet_..." Gajeel sighed, his gaze burning into her bruising wrist. "_I came here to find you...and tell you what the Fiorian King has done_."

"_He will not live long, so whatever he has done now will be of no consequence. You did not need to come – I have claimed my revenge_." The larger male grunted, his fists clenching on the arms of the chair.

"_Father_?" Gajeel replied questioningly, turning his attention to the older, silver-haired male.

"_Do you remember why I left last summer_?" The male asked, not returning Gajeel's gaze.

"_You did not leave last summer...you left four summers ago...I was still a boy, but you left us_." Gajeel muttered bitterly, rubbing his rough thumb gently over the purpling skin. "_Mother granted me leave when I survived my eighteenth winter and she promised me my final stud if I returned successful from my lone hunt for you._"

"_I am sorry, but you must understand why I left? I had to find out if the rumours your Princess told me were true. You know I did not want to believe them_." The male sighed heavily, suddenly looking very tired.

"_The Princess of Fiore mentioned something about a male with dragon-scale tattoos...Was he an important member of your royal family_?" Levy asked quietly, instantly regretting her words as an angry snarl escaped Gajeel's father.

"_How much have you told her?! You should not have even taught her our language! You fool! I should cut your hair right here with my own hands_!" He roared, suddenly on his feet, a deadly glare directed at Gajeel.

"_She knows almost nothing, so do not complain. She knows that you are my father and that we are of the Ragkiz family. She knows the meaning of our studs and our hair, and she knows the meaning of the dragon-scale tattoos – she knows nothing else_!" Gajeel snapped back, baring his own teeth.

"_You have betrayed us! Why should I believe you_?!" The older male snarled, the white of his teeth flickering between his lips as they twitched.

"We are kupeno." He grunted, all the fight leaving his body as he turned back to Levy. "I am sorry about my father...He is angry with me, not you. Had you been a passerby, he wourd not have given you a second grance. It is my faurt he threatens you."

"It is okay, Gajeel...If he is like you, then I shall have to trust him too." She smiled brightly, earning a snort of amusement from Gajeel. "If he is your kupeno, I shall treat him as my kupeno."

"Are you sure you can trust this beast with your rife?" Gajeel joked, jabbing the thumb of his free hand towards his father.

"_What are you saying_?" The male grumbled, frowning at them while the ring piercing of his bottom lip twitched.

"He prays with the ring with his tongue when he is surking." Gajeel explained, trying to keep the amusement out of his voice. "Vkrepr...wirr-"

"_Hello, father of Gajeel. My name is Levy McGarden_." Levy began, stepping down from the bed, positioning herself between Gajeel and his father.

_"__...Father of Gajeel...? My name is Metalicana, child_." The male snorted, falling back into his seat.

"That means he rikes you." Gajeel whispered quietly in her ear, making her giggle.

"_You said 'McGarden'...How much do you know of the events ten winters ago_?" Metalicana sighed heavily, watching her closely.

"_I do not know what you mean? I was four winters old...almost five springs_?" Levy explained, sitting back down on the side of the bed, feeling the bed move as Gajeel joined her. "_What happened_?"

"_Born in the spring...? My eldest sister was captured and her mate went in search of her. A rumour reached me that ten years ago, he found the place where his son was being held – my sister had been heavily pregnant when she was taken. She should not have left her home, but she was never one to sit still...They would have managed to take her with very little effort_." He grumbled, rubbing his forehead wearily. "_The rumours say that her mate was executed by your people, but I had no reason to believe that. His son is rumoured to have gone missing, so I came here to Fiore to find out if the rumours were true. The rumours took six summers to reach our people. I did not make it past the Border, but I realised that the men attempting to capture me were high ranking. I figured I could find out about our missing King by listening in on their conversations_."

"_Your King_?!" Levy gasped in horror, feeling Gajeel gently wrap his arm around her waist.

"_Yes, our King. I have heard rumours identical here and I find myself believing that the family of my sister is no longer with us_." Metalicana sighed, pain etched across his sharp features.

"I have seen the son of our King."

"_Gajeel_?" His father mumbled questioningly.

"_Sorry...I have seen the son of our King. He looks just like his father, but has the spirit of his mother. You can tell he is one of our people in just one glance_." Gajeel explained, watching as his father straightened up in his seat.

"_You are sure he is the next true King of our people_?" Metalicana demanded, narrowing his eyes at Gajeel.

"_I do not know if he would make a good King, and he cannot speak our language, but he is definitely the son of King Igneel_." Gajeel replied, holding the older male's gaze. "_He has the eyes of our people, the hair and eye colours of his father and, as I said, he has the spirit of his mother. He is their son. He is even the right age. If you saw him, Father, you would recognise him as your nephew, as I did a cousin._"

"_If that is true, we must take him back with us. Will he come willingly_?" Metalicana asked, frowning slightly as he tried to read his son.

"_He will not be sure of what is happening. He has been raised by a Fiorian family since he was five summers. He would be leaving behind his family and the one he wishes to become his mate, for the sake of following two strangers who are telling him that they are taking him to his people_." Gajeel explained, not bothering to hold back his doubtful tone.

"_Gajeel...Who are you talking about..._?" Levy inquired nervously, looking up at him as she bit her lip.

"Prince Natzu of the Gruhtaan famiry."


	26. Chapter 26

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

**Hey! Early update this week! I promised _amaranth121_ that if she updated 'Gold and Iron', I'd update early! I'll still post an update on Thursday though! ;P Thank you so much to everyone reviewing/reblogging/reading/liking/following/favouriting this! We honestly do mean it! Thank you! And, as always, thank you to the wonderful _MakeItHale _for BETAing this!**

**^_^ I hope you enjoy this chapter! ^_^**

* * *

**Chapter Twenty-Six**

Levy stared disbelievingly at Gajeel, wondering if he had somehow gained a concussion. Perhaps all of the fast running had turned his brain to mush? Natsu was just an ordinary boy who had been raised by the old Drill Sergeant and his wife. There was no way he could be a Prince! He was Natsu! Levy silently laughed to herself as she remembered Gajeel's definition of 'dottohern'. Well, if Natsu really was a Prince, then surely Lucy would be _thrown_ at him! No, it was all too impossible to imagine that Natsu was a Prince. He could not be of royal birth – he was just the adopted son of a Drill Sergeant.

"Natsu cannot be a Prince." Levy stated, nodding her head at her decision.

"Vkrepr, picture him. He has eyes rike ours?" Gajeel began. She slowly nodded, picturing Natsu grinning at her, golden, lizard-like eyes shining bright with his enthusiasm. "He has teeth rike ours." Levy focused on his grin, remembering his unnaturally sharp fangs, picturing all his sharp white teeth, an image of Gajeel's as he waited for the apple core flashing into her mind.

Gajeel could not be right...could he?

"He has an unnaturar size for a Fiorian boy of his age. He rivars your cousin in strength, arthough he has not undergone training, unrike your cousin. He is one of us, Vkrepr, not one of you." Gajeel explained softly, pulling her closer.

"_He is your Prince...I do not think he will come with you..._" Levy mumbled, leaning her head against Gajeel's warm, firm chest.

"_I agree with you, Vkrepr...I am not sure what will happen if he does not_." Gajeel murmured.

"_The title of King will pass onto the younger brother of King Igneel, breaking the line_." Metalicana sighed from his chair, still watching the two closely. "_Gajeel, you should get some rest – we leave before dawn._"

"_We do not have long then_." Levy smiled, starting to shuffle back onto the bed.

"_Vkrepr_?" Gajeel grunted, releasing her, causing her to shiver as his heat left her.

"_If we are leaving before dawn, we do not have long_." She explained, lying along the length of the bed.

"_Vkrepr, you cannot come_." Gajeel snorted, rolling her further onto the bed.

"What do you mean 'I cannot come'? Of course I am coming!" She returned, sitting up on the bed.

"You wourd not be abre to make the journey." Gajeel sighed grumpily, laying himself down beside her. "Go to sreep, Vkrepr, we are arr tired."

"_What is she saying now_?" Metalicana groaned from his chair, opening one eye to look over at them. "_And you should not share a bed with her. You may consider her family, but she is not your sibling or your mate._"

"_She is already cold; I need to keep her warm_." He defended, shuffling closer to her. "_And she is demanding to be allowed to come_."

"_She would slow us down too much! She cannot come, whether you want her to or not_!" He snapped back, glaring at his son out of one eye.

"_She could not cope with the journey, Father...I cannot bring her with me. I knew that the first day I spent with her in Magnolia._" Gajeel sighed, closing his eyes.

"What do you mean by that?" Levy whispered into the darkening room, curling into Gajeel's side.

"I know you cannot traver in the sun...You burn, Vkrepr...You wourd not make the journey." He replied, a bitter undertone to his words.

"I did not choose to be like this." She bit back, instantly regretting it as she felt him flinch next to her.

"I know, Vkrepr...Just sreep for now...We wirr tark more in the morning..." Gajeel sighed, wrapping his arm around her, pulling her impossibly closer to him.

She closed her eyes, inhaling the warm, metal scent that radiated from Gajeel's skin, the added hint of soap and sweat making her smile quietly to herself. This was likely to be the last chance she would get to be in Gajeel's arms and she had just ruined the moment by snapping at him. Maybe she should apologise? No, if he was asleep, she would end up waking him. He had just admitted to being tired, so why should she wake him? She was being a burden to him, as she always was. She could not survive the journey and so far all she had really done was slow them down. She had even managed to argue several times with them since the three of them had met each other outside the enclosure of the white Bengal Tiger.

She nuzzled further into him, jumping slightly as his other arm crept over the top of her. He pulled her partially on top of him as his arms completely encircled her, leaving her head resting over his steady, beating heart. She sighed as she cuddled into him, the rhythmic beating strangely soothing amidst the threatening darkness. She heard him sigh, almost sounding as if in contentment. Levy rolled her eyes at herself as she silently lectured herself for imagining such childish things. He was just protecting her from the cold; he was still carrying out his duties, even after he had escaped. She smiled into the darkness as she closed her eyes.

"Tehkr, Vkrepr."

...

Levy yawned, stretching her arms out across her bed. She opened her eyes, wondering why she felt cold as she sat up to look for her quilt. This was not her room. She had been with Gajeel. He had left her...Where had he gone? She stared blankly at her pale bare legs, cursing her own skin. She heard a noise to her right, snapping her attention to the silver-haired male as he stretched himself, his foot knocking the short table by his feet. Metalicana was still there, so maybe Gajeel had not left yet? She swung her legs off the side of the bed, gaining the male's attention.

"_Good morning, girl_." He yawned, studying the still dark room of the abandoned house. "_I suppose you cannot see much in this light_?" Levy shook her head, watching the beginning light reflecting off of his hair. "_Gajeel has allowed us to sleep in unfortunately – he clearly did not think of the consequences_."

"_I was getting you breakfast; do not be ungrateful, old man_." Gajeel grumbled, walking in through the door.

"_Gajeel_!" Levy exclaimed happily, quickly catching herself as she gained his father's attention.

"_Morning, Vkrepr_." He grinned, ruffling her hair and handing her a roll. "_I know it is not as fancy as what you are used to, but it should keep you going until you return to the palace_."

"_Return to the palace_?" Levy frowned, watching Gajeel as he collapsed into the seat opposite his father, throwing the other male a roll.

"_How do you plan to rescue Juvia_?" He grunted, staring unblinkingly at his father.

"_So that is why you came for me, hm_?" Metalicana smirked, biting into his roll. "_This country has no real idea of the truth. They call us '_Dragon-men_', but they have false notions of dragons. Only a dragon could take a Princess from another dragon. She will be fine – the current King will pass before we even make it back to Bosco. His son is against this fighting, so he will return your Princess. I am not sure how he will make up for the fact that his father claimed Boscan land and stole the Princess, but he will. Perhaps he will offer the King a suitor for her? Would that upset you_?"

"_As long as whoever she ends up stuck with treats her right, I have no problem with her finding a mate – I will be happy for her_. _The so-called dragons of the human world will have done their duty_." He replied, ignoring his father's teasing. "_What is your plan_?"

"Is the Princess the one you would choose as a mate?" Levy asked, not daring to ask in his language, his father seemingly too quick.

"Vkrepr, this does not concern you – finish your rorr and reave." He grumbled, not taking his attention away from his father. "_As I was saying, what is your plan_?"

"_My plan is to return to our lands and persuade our people to intervene in this war. It has gone on too long and neither the Fiorian army or the Boscan army seem interested in ending it. The Fiorian King will pass away painfully and slowly and then the Boscan Princess will be returned. We will greet the two armies at the Border, then demand that they end their foolishness and if they do not, we will force them to_." Metalicana explained, finishing his roll and getting to his feet.

"_The King said yesterday that he had a new plan...According to my uncle, only guards are going to be left at the border...I believe the King may have plans to move against your people...He said that he had worked out where they were_." Levy stated, trying to make herself seem larger, more important.

"_If what you say is true, then I should have made sure he died last night_!" He snapped, turning to Gajeel with a greater sense of purpose. "_Gajeel, we must leave immediately! We have no time to wander around! We are heading straight to Bosco_! _We will have to avoid the roads, but we need to get back now!_"

"_Actually, there are a few things I wish to collect. Can we pass by the farm I have been staying at_?" Gajeel asked, pushing himself back out of his chair.

"_Gajeel, it is an estate! Not a farm! Why can you not understand the difference!? It is like the difference between a servant and a slave_!" She groaned, rolling her eyes as she began another language lesson with the giant idiot.

"_In which case, it is definitely a farm! As I was a slave_!" He snapped back, glaring at her.

"_You were not a slave! And it is an estate_!" She argued back, standing up from the bed.

"_A slave is someone treated poorly that earns the right to eat, that is held against their will by their master. I was a slave, Vkrepr. I was held there, forced to wear shackles, and I had to work to earn food. If I had been a servant, I would have earned '_money'_ which I could have used in the town_." He sighed, stepping towards her, his expression unreadable. "_An estate is a large plot of land that is worked by many slaves, but your uncle only had two, and he let the fields that were not necessary turn to dust. It was not an estate, Vkrepr – it was a land of dust._"

"It was an estate..." She whispered quietly, her gaze falling to the floor as Gajeel wrapped his arms around her. "My uncle...after my mother died...he blamed her death on the servants...he-he shut them all out...I could hear them crying for help...I was a child...I did not know where he kept them...but I had to listen to them as they died...He was paranoid that having servants in the house would invite disease again...so he refused to have any...My aunt persuaded him to let her buy one, a young girl, to help her around the house...You have no idea how surprised I was when she told me about you...You were a miracle."

"I am no miracre, Vkrepr. You are the miracre. You are kind to everyone and you wercomed me, a supposed barbarian, into your famiry. You trusted me with your rife and taught me your ranguage, retting me teach you in turn. Your voice is as soothing as the image brought to mind by the sight of your hair. You are the one that kept me going for so long, Vkrepr. You brought me to my father." He replied softly, cupping her chin to raise her face to look up at him. "My father is not that wrong when he carrs me a boy; without you encouraging me, I do not know if I wourd have managed to come this far without giving up."

"Before you came, all I did was read books, dreaming of having an adventure of my own. You made me realise there was a world outside my head and you have even given me a chance to live my dream..._Thank you, Gajeel_." She mumbled, staring up into his mesmerising rubies, unable to look away.

"_We should go, Gajeel_." Metalicana grunted from the doorway, not looking towards them.

"_I am coming, Father_." He smiled sadly, lowering his forehead to rest it against hers. "Goodbye, Revy."


	27. Chapter 27

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to the wonderful Hiro Mashima!**

**Hey! Sorry this is a day late! My mum kept me busy all day yesterday! :P _Fairy of the Friz_ got the sketch for the 250th review and that is now posted on Tumblr (and later will be added on Facebook)! ^_^ Thank you to everyone favouriting/following/liking/reblogging/reading/reviewing! ^_^ Thank you to the wonderful _MakeItHale_ for BETAing this and still hanging around even with the daily dose of angst-torture I give you! XD**

** So, I hope you enjoy this latest chapter! ^_^**

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**Chapter Twenty-Seven**

Levy sat quietly on her sofa, her book open as a warm evening breeze drifted in through the open window. It had not been a particularly hot day and she had spent her morning driving the animals out to their fields with her younger cousins, much to her aunt's amusement. They had even successfully gotten the animals back in before dinner, but now there was little else she wished to do. She could go get some wool to spin for making new clothes, but that would only remind her of the tunic she had told Gajeel she would make for him once they returned.

She sighed heavily, turning the page as she read yet another book about a Princess being rescued from a dragon. She was sure that the dragon was not cruel to the Princess and clearly looked after her or she would not have managed to live so many years, alone, locked in a tower, guarded by a fire-breathing dragon. She could not help but wonder if all dragons breathed fire or if there were different types of dragon. She was being childish again. Dragons were myths even if 'dragon-people' were not.

She heard a knock on her door and called for her visitor to enter.

"Levy? Lucy is still worried about you and, I admit, I am a little concerned myself." Her uncle began, closing the door behind him. "I will need to return to my duties soon, but I cannot leave without easing my mind first."

"I shall listen to you, Uncle." Levy replied, smiling kindly up at him as she sat up, gesturing to the seat beside her.

"We are all concerned about you, Levy. I know you were given a hard time when you returned to the palace alone, but surely you can understand why?" He sighed, taking hold of one of her hands in his as he sat beside her. "You had been seen to be overly friendly to the barbarian and when he took you with him...we all thought we would never see you again. We thought we had lost you forever and then you reappeared with just a sprained wrist...We could not be sure if you had willingly helped them or if you had truly been held hostage. Now, you are painfully quiet – it has been two weeks since we returned from the palace and you have barely said more than two words together."

"Have I ever said much, Uncle?" She inquired, holding onto her smile as she withheld her overpowering emotions. Since returning to the estate, they so often tried to crash through the protective wall of her mind. They regularly tried to force her to start yelling and screaming at her family, especially at the man in front of her.

"No, but there is a pained sadness to your silence now...I know you feel betrayed. You came to trust him so much, only for him to abuse that trust. He has broken you and thrown you away, and you do not need to try to hide that from us. We understand that you are upset...we want to be here for you – we are your _family_." Her uncle explained, awkwardly wrapping an arm around her shoulder, squeezing her hand comfortingly.

"I am fine, truly – he has left no permanent damage. See? Even my wrist is healing." She smiled, showing him her fading green bruise. "It has taken a long time to heal, but I guess that means I should be grateful that he did not break it."

"Very grateful indeed, Levy." He replied, smiling softly back at her, squeezing her shoulders. "You should sleep. I am on my way to my own bed and I can see you look very tired."

"I am, Uncle. I will go to bed after I finish this chapter, promise." She nodded, returning her attention to her book as he got up from the sofa.

"What is your book about?" He asked, frowning at her over his shoulder as he opened her door.

"A Princess held against her will, guarded by a dragon. A Prince comes to save her in the end – I have read it before and it ends like every other. The Prince slays the dragon and they live happily ever after. It never tells of what the Princess was met with when she goes with the Prince and no-one ever just asks the dragon nicely." She sighed, smiling sadly back up at him.

"When the dragons took you, they allowed you to come back to the palace. If they had not kidnapped you in the first place, I would have wanted to thank them." Her uncle mused, turning back to the door and slipping out.

"I went with them because I wanted to...but they would let me go no further with them...I have one last chance and I do not even know if I will get it. If I am asleep, I will never know he was here, but he will only come here if his father allows it...His father is as strict as my uncle, Mother." She whispered into the silent, cool night air. She closed her eyes as she leant back on her sofa. "Did you know about Natsu? There are so many questions I want to ask you and I know you cannot answer. I have no-one I can talk to now...Lucy cannot look at me...she feels so responsible for what happened, yet I cannot tell her the truth...She has even agreed to marry Captain Loke to give me peace...I am being unfair to her, Mother."

Levy sighed, going back to trying to read her book, but the words were still a senseless blur under her gaze. She was hurting her closest friend and she could not even change that. She should not have let him leave her. She should not have gone with him. She should have just let the King's guards try to take control of him when he had become angry. No, he would have done what his people had spent generations trying to prove wrong. She had helped him prove that he was not a barbarian. His people did not have a word for barbarian. His father would not have even paid any attention to her if she had been a passerby. His people were about to try to end a war that had been going on for decades, one that had likely cost them their King.

His people were not the barbarians, but the Fiorian King was.

She snapped her book shut, scrunching her eyes closed as she fought back her angry tears. She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. She smiled as she thought of Gajeel sitting, relaxing next to her on the edge of the fountain, his beautiful eyes closed as he leant back on his hands. She sighed, picturing him opening one mesmerising ruby so that he could watch her through a black slit at the corner of his eye. She watched as he grinned at her, catching her watching him. He shifted his weight to his left hand and ruffled her hair, making her glare at him, secretly enjoying his sign of affection.

She stood up from her sofa, lazily wandering over to her window. She rested against its frame as she looked up the courtyard towards her aunt and uncle's room. The light of their oil lamp vanished, leaving hers as the only one to give light to the ink black courtyard. She giggled to herself as she remembered Gajeel growling at her as she tugged at the knots in his hair. He had been like an adorable little child, even if he was at least twice her size. She had known his threats were completely empty, as they had been while he had still been in the bath. She smiled sadly down at where the fountain lay in the dark, sighing to herself as she remembered him telling her about his culture. He would return home with his father, get his thirtieth piercing, and then claim his 'pura'.

Levy turned away from the window, moving to pull her nightgown from her bed. She slipped her dress off of her shoulders in a trance, pulling the nightgown over her head as she tried to imagine what sort of woman Gajeel would choose as his 'pura'. She would not be like Lucy, but that did not narrow it down much. He had mentioned something about not having learned that talking to little girls with blue hair was a bad thing. That told her two things, one amusing and the other just hurtful. The Princess that he cared so much for that he travelled across an entire country and then endured over three months of slavery for, had blue hair like her. Maybe that was why he had shown affection to her and Wendy? They reminded him of his Princess? But they were both just little girls to someone like him.

Levy slipped under her quilt, warming her apparently cold body. She moved her hand to reach out for the oil lamp. Levy opened the little glass door, before blowing out the little flame that had lit her room. She snapped her hand back, quickly curling under her covers as darkness enveloped her. She took a deep breath and peeked her head out, reminding herself that she would have had to survive through dark nights outside if she had gone with Gajeel. She remembered the protective warmth that had radiated from him as he had held her in the dark, his gently beating heart soothing her to sleep. She would have been safe. He would have protected her from the dark...at least until they reached his homeland. There, she would have been forgotten, invisible to him the moment that he chose his 'pura'. This was where she belonged, in her world, waiting to find her own 'pura'.

She opened her eyes slowly, gasping as the moonlight shone in through her window bathing her room in beautiful silver light. How had she never noticed before? Perhaps the light from the lamps dimmed the moon's effect? A soft smile grew across her lips as she moved her eyes around the room, her mind slipping to Metalicana's long, thick mane of tangled, silver hair. She could hear Gajeel's words echoing in her head, telling her that his father liked her. She had no idea what she had done to make him like her, but she could not help but feel pleased at that fact.

She slipped out of her bed, cold tiles greeting her warm toes as she moved to look for the moon. She smiled up at the full circle of perfect white, seemingly looking directly back at her. She allowed her eyes to drift through the cloudless autumn sky, mesmerised by the twinkling of the billions of stars that were watching over her as she leant on the window sill. She sighed as she moved to sit on the ledge. While staring up at the beautiful night sky, her fear of the darkness was completely forgotten. How could she have ever been afraid of something so beautiful? But she knew that it was not the darkness itself that was beautiful, but the lights that shone through the black night.

"It is breathtaking, Mother...Just as I remember it...I forgot about this sight that you had so often shown me...I lost sight of it once you passed...the night became a place of terror...I took to hiding under my covers, trying to escape the crying screams of those people that you had cared so much for...The night is beautiful...completely silent...They are no longer in pain, Mother...but I should have realised that so long ago..." She whispered, staring up at the perfect moon.

She heard a noise down below her, snapping her attention to the courtyard. She squinted, trying to see through the darkness, searching for something, anything, in the inky blackness of the shadows being cast throughout the courtyard. She could see the moonlight rippling on the surface of the fountain's water, but nothing beyond it at the opposite side of the courtyard. There had to be something lurking in those shadows. Moonlight flickered off of something, dragging her attention back to the fountain. She felt eyes staring back at her, holding her gaze as she stared into the nothingness. She took a step back, not taking her eyes from where the flicker of moonlight had been. She gulped as it flickered again.

What was down there?


	28. Chapter 28

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

**Hey! Sorry this is a day late! I left you on a really mean bit too, didn't I?! XD I'm frantically trying to clean the house for my boyfriend arriving; he's coming over 100 miles just to meet my parents and my mum wants the house spotless :P Anyway! Thank you so much to everyone favouriting/following/liking/reblogging/reading/reviewing this! Thank you to the wonderful _MakeItHale_ for BETAing this! Please enjoy this latest chapter! ^_^**

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**Chapter Twenty-Eight**

She froze, unsure of what to do. Should she ring the bell and wake the house? Should she relight her lamp and go to investigate? How would she even get into the courtyard?! Her uncle would have locked the doors before he had come to speak to her. He was leaving in the morning and they had an intruder tonight. How had they even gotten past the gate? Her heart skipped, remembering her first morning helping the giant male servant. He had climbed the wall, silently, as if it had been nothing. He had even jumped back down without making a sound, a startling thought considering his sheer size. She certainly would not have believed it if she had not seen it for herself.

She stepped back towards the window to call down to man she so dearly missed. She stopped herself just short of the windowsill. Whatever was lurking in the shadows had not approached her or tried to make itself known. It could be Gajeel, but there was just as much chance that it could be someone else completely – she doubted that Gajeel would be the only one of his people capable of such a feat. They were only a week's walk from the Boscan border, two days by horseback, so it could be someone looking for Gajeel. Or her uncle. The thing lurking in the shadows could be an assassin that was sent here to kill her uncle in the dead of the night, in an attempt to end the pointless war.

A rumble of thunder echoed throughout the courtyard.

She would recognise that growl anywhere! That was _his_ growl!

"_Gajeel_!" She whisper yelled. "_Gajeel! You came_!?"

"_Vkrepr...Why are you awake? You should be sleeping...I did not want you to know I was here..._" He called back quietly, taking a step closer to the fountain, the light of the moon capturing him, his hair shining the same silver of his father's.

"_Then why did you growl_?" She mused, leaning out of the window.

"_I could sense your...your unease. You were nervous...then you suddenly became...I should not be standing here explaining this_." He sighed, taking a few steps towards her. "_I have to leave, Vkrepr_."

"_You...could sense...how I was feeling? What did I suddenly become_?" She asked. She was torn between happiness that he was there and understood, and feeling nervous that he had been aware of her feelings growing the whole time. She cringed at the possibility that he had been aware of her liking him before she even had any idea.

"_You suddenly became...became...I think I must have got it wrong, Vkrepr. I hurt you and left you behind...I believe my opinion is wishful thinking_." He replied, taking another few cautious steps towards her.

"_Please, tell me what you thought I was feeling...I need to know_." She whispered softly, closing her eyes as she held her breath, awaiting his answer.

"_You suddenly became...unbelievably happy...I cannot understand why, but then you became unsettled again...I could not leave you like that...I had to let you know that I meant you, and your family, no harm_." He muttered, closing the gap between them, the only distance remaining being the height of her bedroom window from the ground.

"_I was happy because I thought you had come back...but then I realised that your people probably have similar skills to you and I realised it could be someone that was not you...Although I have never been so happy to hear your growl, Gajeel – I never thought I would find that terrifying thunder-like rumble welcoming_." She laughed quietly, gazing down at him. The stark shadows cast by the moon's light made his handsome, sharp features fiercer. "_I have missed you more than you could ever know_."

"_I have missed you too, Vkrepr. It has been a long walk. It was hard passing your window, knowing that you would not appear to wave out of it at me...knowing that I could not risk coming up to see you..._" He called softly, frowning up at her.

"_The door is locked; you could not have come up to see me_." She returned, smirking down at him. "_I am glad that I decided to look at the moon; I got to see you again...even if I cannot reach you_."

"_You have already reached me, Vkrepr. You reached me a long time ago. I took to climbing in your window to watch you sleep...we do not have a word for you...and any comparisons I could make would not do you justice_." He explained, looking longingly back up at her. "_You are more than a dottohern, at least to me._"

"_Gajeel...I..._"

"_I have to leave, Vkrepr...I made you something...before we left for Crocus. I never got a chance to give it to you. I never knew how...Sharing food like we did...that is a very big thing in our culture – it expresses a wish to be family. I was happy when you bit into that apple...You surprised me, since I am a 'barbarian'...You bit into the apple after I had, and I knew you did not know its importance in my culture, but it still meant so much..._" He mumbled, rubbing his arm awkwardly. "_What I have done...It would be frowned upon in my culture – the gift I made for you, Vkrepr. Although, allowing you to become family is also highly frowned upon..._"

"_Will your hair be cut for it when you return? If so, I do not want it. I do not want to cause you shame_." She replied, hardening her expression as the ache returned to her chest.

"_It will not...It is a different frowned upon...When you said that you would personally make me a new tunic, I felt guilty for not having found the courage to give you your gift...I knew I would not be returning from Crocus...I was surprised to find that the stable had not been cleared of my things..._" He smiled, seemingly unsure of what to say.

"_They have been waiting for me to find a reason to go into town. It did not take me long to realise what they were trying to do. I do not know if more than Lucy knew just how much I...how much I cared for you_." She replied, blushing slightly as she broke away from his gaze.

"_Wait here...I will get your gift. I have to give it to you, to explain, to make you understand. I am not sure you will even be able to guess its importance in my culture...I have to tell you...even though I should not._" He whispered back, a desperate tone to his voice.

"_Wait! I-I cannot receive it if I am up here; I need to find a way down_!" She burst out, stopping him as he turned to walk away.

"_Vkrepr, I will come up to you! I will not let you risk getting into trouble for me. Not again_." He grunted, narrowing his eyes at her as she sat on the windowsill.

"_I trust you, remember? I know you will catch me_." She grinned, leaning backwards out of the window, letting herself fall.

"_Vkrepr_!" He snapped from below her. He growled at her as he snatched her into his arms and turned her entire body to face him. Her feet dangled in the air as he held her up, her face inches from his. "_What do you think you are doing?! You could have been hurt_!"

"_I will not let our last moments be through a window when I know I can have you hold me in your arms_." She smiled softly, placing her hand against his rough chin. She watched Gajeel's eyebrows draw together, his eyes closing tightly, almost desperately, as he leant into her touch.

"_I do not want to leave you, Vkrepr..._" He whispered, the moonlight causing his perfectly cut rubies to shine as he opened them again, slowly sliding her down him towards the ground. "_I will go get your gift – wait for me by the fountain_."

Levy nodded and took hold of his hand. He gave her a soft, almost regretful, smile as he squeezed her hand. He led her to the edge of the fountain, not releasing her hand, even as they reached it. She smiled back up at him, moving to sit on the edge of the fountain as she had done so many times since she had met him. It seemed only fitting to say their final goodbye there, the place where they had forged their little family. The spot where they had learned to comfort each other in their loneliness.

He released her hand to ruffle her hair before disappearing into the shadows. She sat silently, staring up at the moon as she awaited his return. She smiled as she began to think about what he could possibly have for her. He had not had money to buy anything, so unless he had stolen things when she had not been looking, he would have had to use whatever he had on hand. What did he have? She could not even think of anything as she sat there, frowning.

"_Vkrepr..._?" His voice called quietly from the shadows, him clearly having seen her expression.

"_I was trying to guess what you could have for me, but I could not think of anything..._" She replied sheepishly, turning towards him as he regained his form.

She blushed as she realised he did not look as he normally did. Levy cringed inwardly as she realised she had not even noticed as he had slid her down him; she had been too mesmerised by the moonlight dancing across his irises. How could she have not realised his torso was completely bare and that all he wore was a skirt made solely of goat's skin? The skirt stopped halfway down his thighs and had large slits up both sides, while every inch of the vast expanse of his tanned, muscular torso was left temptingly visible.

"_You are behaving strangely again, Vkrepr...I am being too forward...I should not have even made these for you._" He mumbled, stopping to stand awkwardly, a few meters away from where she sat.

"_I only just realised what you are wearing...Your skin is the same colour across your torso. I guess that thought should have crossed my mind while you were in the bath...Sorry, I am being rude_!" She babbled, getting increasingly embarrassed as she made a fool of herself.

"You technicarry shourd not have seen me bathing..." He replied bashfully, swapping to her language. "_This is what we normally wear. I have one for my father too. They allow us to move much quieter and more freely than your restricting tunics for slaves. I made them from the goat pelts_." He explained, gesturing to the skirt of goat's skin around his hips, held tight just below the top of the fur by a piece of twine with tiny white bones hanging from it. "_The slits up the side allow our legs to move as much as they need to, while the pelts still..._" He continued, turning his head away from her, watching her from the corner of his eye. Levy was sure that had it been daylight, she would have seen both a rosy cheek and a crimson ear.

"_Still provides you with some modesty_." She finished for him teasingly, smirking up at him as she suddenly regained her confidence. "_You clearly have very good crafting skills. I like your twine – that must have taken a lot of time and effort_."

"_I am glad you like it!...I-I should just go..._" He grunted, rubbing his arm awkwardly again, drawing Levy's attention to the dark object in the hand of the arm he was rubbing. "_I should not have made this for you...It was stupid..._"

"_May I see it_?" Levy asked, smiling sheepishly up at him as she remembered why she had come down to the courtyard...by falling backwards out of a window into Gajeel's arms.

"_It is not much..._" He mumbled, still standing a few meters away from her, refusing to come closer.

"_You said it was a very important thing in your culture and it was seriously frowned upon for you to have made it for me. I will not believe you if you say that it is not much. If that were true, it would not be frowned upon and you would not have felt the urge to explain what such a gesture would mean in your culture...And you would not be so embarrassed to give it to me_." She returned, blushing slightly herself as she finished.

"Vkrepr...I made these for you..."


	29. Chapter 29

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

**So, here is your early update! I'm not sure you really know what you're asking for, but please enjoy! ^_^ You are all so wonderful, so I'm very happy to be able to put you out of your misery! ^_^**

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**Chapter Twenty-Nine**

"Vkrepr...I made these for you..." Gajeel replied awkwardly as he took a few nervous steps towards her. He held his hand out to her, bashfully trying to hand her the soft-looking item. "_I did not have much to work with...but you are not big...You are small and you are the word we do not have...I tried to make them like you...but...I-I...Vkrepr..._?"

"_Thank you_." She whispered, nervously taking the soft fur from him. She began to unfold it slowly. "_It is soft...like a rabbit. Did you use rabbit fur_?"

"_Yes! I used rabbit fur! It was really soft, like your hair!...I thought you might like it..._" He rushed in excitement before suddenly remembering himself, snapping his gaze away from her again. _"...We eat a lot of rabbit...but it takes a lot of pelts to make clothing...So we collect them and...make special things_."

"_Make special things? Is it because you made this for me or because it is made from rabbit that it is frowned upon_?" She asked nervously, looking down at the folded brown fur in her hands. "_Are you sure you should be giving me this_?"

"._..Both...and I want to give it to you...I do not expect you to wear it...but I made it for you..._" He smiled sheepishly, awkwardly sitting down next to her.

"You are adorable." She teased, shouldering him playfully.

"Ad-dor-rab-ble?" He echoed, looking at her in confusion.

"_I did not think this would result in a language lesson_." She mused as she leant against him and began gently stroking the soft fur. She did not want to unfold it because she knew he would leave the moment she did. "I guess 'cute'? If something is 'adorable'...it is...you believe it to be 'cute' and 'amusing', to the point where you are very 'fond' of it...?"

"What is 'cute'?" He frowned, watching her warily.

"...Like a rabbit or a baby animal? 'Cute' is the word you would use to describe them." She nodded, hoping he understood what she was trying to say.

"_You find me amusing and think I look like a baby animal_?" He scowled, turning away from her.

"_I do not think you look like a baby animal, but I get the same sort of feeling when I see you huffing as when I look at a baby animal. As I said, you are_ 'adorable'." She giggled, shaking her head at him.

"_We do not have a word for_ 'adorable', _or_ 'cute'_...but...those are the words I wish to use_." He grumbled, turning back to look at her, frowning.

"_Use for what_?" She mused, leaning against him.

"_For you_." He snapped, looking away from her. "_Now are you going to look at what I made you_?!"

"_I am putting it off because I know you will have to leave_." She admitted quietly, feeling him tense.

"'Adorable' _also suggests you are fond of me..._" He murmured, flicking his slits to look down at her. "_Maybe you will...understand...There is a chance you will understand my gifts_."

"Hm." She hummed, smiling softly down at the rabbit fur.

She sighed, sitting up and readying herself for whatever this could be. She continued to unfold the pelt, gasping as she spotted the small white skull in the centre of the bundle. He had given her a skull? To be this small, it must be a rabbit's...but why would he give her a _skull_?! She carefully moved to pick it up, trying not to offend him. This was an important gesture. She lifted it, suddenly realising there was twine threaded through it with three chicken feathers hanging either side. She held it up to him, smiling at him, as she glanced down at the twine around his pelt. Had he made her a skirt and this was to go around her? Surely he did not think this twine was long enough?

"_It is for your neck...It would be a good idea to not let my father see it..._" He mumbled, his slits flicking between her eyes and the cobbles at their feet.

"_Gajeel...what does it mean...exactly? I am honoured you have made it for me, but I feel you making me this...is more important...than- I cannot assume my thoughts to be correct_." She replied, watching him closely.

"_I think they might be..._" He grunted, shifting awkwardly on the cold, stone edge of the fountain. "_I do not expect you to wear them...but you have not looked at the other things yet..._"

She nodded, laying the necklace carefully by her side. She lifted a corner of the fur, stopping as she felt it move freely of the bit she had been unfolding. She glanced at him, finding him watching her eagerly, making her smile in amusement. She shook her head and lifted the rabbit fur clear of the bundle. She tilted her head, staring at the strange thing. She had no idea what it was, but he clearly seemed pleased with himself. She could make out two triangles joined securely at one corner, four strips of fur coming from it, one in each of the other corners. She looked at him expectantly, showing him the strange object.

"_For modesty_." He nodded, smiling at her as if what he had said made perfect sense.

"_I am not sure how this will grant modesty, Gajeel...What do I do with it_?" She frowned, looking between the fur and Gajeel.

"_For covering your_ drauvrv." He explained, still smiling at her.

"_My what_?" She asked, looking back at him in confusion.

"_Do not get upset with me..._" He grumbled, rolling his eyes, before reaching his hands out towards her, groping her chest. "_You have _drauvrv."

"Oh, okay!" Levy squeaked, her entire body tensing as her skin flushed under the improper touch of Gajeel's large hands. "_They are_ 'breasts', _Gajeel...and how does this cover them_?" She breathed out, holding up the rabbit skin garment again, trying to regain her composure while attempting to ignore the fact that he had not removed his hands yet.

"_Like this_." He mumbled awkwardly, removing his hands to take the garment, only to hold it against her breasts. "_You tie the top strips behind your neck and the bottom ones behind your back. Yours may not be big, but you should still maintain your modesty_." He nodded, blushing slightly. "_I do not mean to insult you...you understand? Large breasts are impractical...good for mothering though_."

"_So my breasts are practical...but not good for mothering..._?" She replied, unsure of how to react to such an explanation.

"_They are not bad for mothering...they are still large enough, in fact, a very good size, small enough to not be in the way but large enough to feed...You have very good hips though_." He continued, watching her out the corner of his eye.

"Thank you." She blushed, unsure of where to look, only to suddenly remember that Gajeel was still holding the rabbit fur to her chest. "_Perhaps I should continue to study your gifts..._" She finished, forcing her eyes to focus on the fur lying flat in her lap.

"The skirt is rike mine...but it matches the top...My father rearry shourd not see this..." He explained, his eyes flicking to the gate as he removed his hands, laying the top down between them, next to the necklace.

"Why?" She asked, looking at him before lifting up the skirt. She gasped as she looked over it, recognising the bone design threaded onto the twine. "...It matches yours...Gajeel?" She looked up at him, her eyes wide, tears pricking her eyes.

"I cannot take you with me...but you must know...I could not reave without you understanding...To make garments for another is normal between famiry, but to have used rabbit skin...Rabbit skin is saved for speciar gifts for very close famiry...such as a parent or a sibring...or a pura...A neck ornament...is a sign of...a sign of...Vkrepr..." He whispered, bringing his forehead to hers. "It is a sign of wishing to be purav..."

"...Gajeel...I-I do not...I-" She cried, dropping the skirt back to her lap, bringing her hands up to hold his pierced face, one of Gajeel's moving to cup her cheek. "_Gajeel, I do not want you to leave...please_?"

"_I must, Vkrepr. My father waits for me by the gate...I must return to my mother and let her know that I am alright. If I stay, I will be forced to remain a slave...We can never be purav, Vkrepr..._" He murmured, sliding his thumb gently across her bottom lip. "_But you must understand, I wish to be with you. The twine...Matching twine shows us to be purav...I should not have done it...but, Vkrepr...I had to."_

"_Gajeel, I could come with you, please?! Do not leave me again_!?" She pleaded, sliding her fingers up into his hair, pulling him closer. "_I cannot pretend that you never existed_."

"_I do not ask you to...I need you to let me go, as I will have to you. I sit here waiting to wake up, waiting to find myself by the fire with my mother, still wondering when my father will return_." He replied, his slits focussed solely on her large, hazel, sorrowful eyes. "_When I met you, I was confused that such a small child would stare at me in wonder – I did not know that females could be as small as you_." He mused, forcing a quiet laugh from her. "_When you appeared with the kid, I realised you must be older than you looked to me...It was not until we were in the town that I realised you were at least of mating age. Your cousin and the Prince treated you as an equal, rather than a child_."

"_They would not have dared treat me as a child_." She laughed, gazing back into his eyes only two inches from her own.

"_You_ _blushed when I lowered you after catching you – that puzzled me greatly_." He smirked back, a spark flickering into his dangerously mesmerising eyes. "_You impressed me with your determination to learn my language and to make me learn yours...something that only close family do. You had no idea what you were asking of me, but you were always so happy whenever either of us successfully learned a new word...You drew me in, Vkrepr. You have fascinated me to no end. I had been mildly offended when you appeared in front of me in clothes I could see through. I was not sure if you were mocking me or trying to throw yourself at me – I know of no males in my family who would be impressed by a female so openly offering themselves._"

"_I was not doing either! I came out to check on you...My aunt thought that you had not slept and asked me to see if I could settle you...I had already seen you from my window and realised something was wrong. I panicked and forgot to dress before leaving my room_." She replied sheepishly, earning a snort of amusement from him. "_'You, me, no' definitely makes sense now_."

"_I should have said yes back then. My father could not force me to leave you behind if I had...But I would have had to watch you...I cannot say it...As I explained in Crocus, you would not have made it here_." He sighed, caressingly stroking her cheek.

"_I would have been very confused if you had suddenly thrown yourself on me, but I guess that is what it looked like I was doing to you_." She mumbled, trying to fight back an embarrassed grin.

"_Then you defended me after I terrified you, telling your cousin that I had not meant to. You earned my respect...and I became even more intrigued. When you stood up to 'Captain Loke' and then tried to plead with me not to fight in my own language...I actually felt pride..._" He explained, his thumb moving to her lip again, his eyes flicking down as he ran the rough pad over the soft, pump, rosy skin. "_Even though I kept turning you away, you had still managed to pick up enough to make yourself clear; you were like a little child learning their first words and, for some reason, I found myself wanting to protect you...You were my little Vkrepr and that fool was putting you in danger_."

"_I was never in any real danger_." She smiled, glancing down at his thin, slightly parted lips, inches from her own, enjoying the caresses of his thumb.

"_I caught you as you fell out of a window...? And stopped my father from murdering you to prevent you raising the alarm...? Not to mention, you just dropped yourself out of a window intentionally without even telling me to catch you_!?" He snorted, gazing at her in wonder and disbelief.

"_I meant from Captain Loke...and I knew you would catch me...I have faith in you. You know I trust you with my life_." She whispered, shaking her head at him.

"_I know you do, Vkrepr_." He murmured, nuzzling his nose against hers.

"_Then take me with you_." She replied softly, watching as pain shot through his ruby-like eyes.

"_You know I cannot_." Gajeel snapped bitterly, holding her gaze as silence surrounded them. The trickling of the fountain was the only sound in the empty courtyard. "_I must leave now, Vkrepr_."

"_I do not want you to, but I cannot ask you to stay...I will never forget you, Gajeel of the Ragkiz family_." She murmured, a tear escaping down her cheek.

"E nixa oio, Vkrepr." He whispered, pressing his lips desperately against hers, his eyes scrunching shut as kissed her with all his previously restrained passion. He seemed to hope that she would understand his words as months of built up emotions cascaded out of him.

Levy blinked, suddenly alone on the side of the fountain. The bruised feeling on her lips was the only hint that he had even been there. He had left her alone, again. Lucy had been right – he had hurt her in the end, but neither could have foreseen this. She loved him and she could not deny that. The way that he had held her, how he had kissed her, she could only hope his final words meant he felt the same way. It was not as if it mattered anymore anyway.

He was gone forever.


	30. Chapter 30

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima**

**Hey, this is a very quick update! There won't be an update for at least a week! A family matter has come up, but please enjoy this chapter! Just please know that Mountains to Dust has not finished yet!**

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**Chapter Thirty**

Levy lay along the cold stone that formed the wide edge of the circular fountain, absently listening to the quiet trickling. She was vaguely aware of the sky beginning to brighten, the moon having slipped away while she had been staring blankly at the stable block. She ignored the feeling of being watched. She refused to move as the salty tracks that covered her cheeks like the white Bengal Tiger's black stripes dried. She did not even care if she was worrying anyone. Her stupid 'frailty' had cost her the man that she loved. She knew he would not return for her and she knew she had to continue with her life as if he had never been there, but, for now, she just needed to lie there. She was not yet ready to move.

"Levy?"

Levy lay completely still as the male voice called down to her, already knowing who had discovered her. She was not even sure how she would explain her current state, or how she had managed to slip through a locked door to get out into the courtyard while everyone slept. The only solution she could think of was the truth, but how could her uncle accept it? He was a man of the world and she was a girl that kept her nose planted in a book. She had let herself fall for Gajeel as if she were the main character in one of her books and she had prayed for her happily ever after. She had known from the start that he would not stay with them forever. He had been a proud man who had travelled a great distance to find himself trapped as their slave. She had no business expecting a happy ending. Her life was not a fairy tale.

"Levy, what are you doing out here?" Her uncle called from the direction of the front door.

"Accepting that my life is not a fairy tale and, even if it were, I am not the heroine of my own story." She replied, sighing as she began to stir.

"What are you talking about?! Surely you do not believe in fairy tales? You only earn in this world what you work hard for – you are what you make of yourself. So you may not be the heroine of your own story, but you are the only one who can decide what to do with what life hands to you." Her uncle explained, sitting down next to her head, stroking her blue waves gently. "What brought this up?"

"I have been living in a fairy tale...only I have just realised how foolish I truly am. My life is far from a fairy tale – my parents are dead, leaving me as a burden to my aunt and uncle, who are trying to marry me off so that they can focus on their own children." She began bitterly, pulling her legs up to her chest. "I found myself constantly daydreaming of adventure. Then I found myself confronted with a mystery and it just seemed so perfectly complex. I ended up letting my real life blend with my daydreams, creating this stupid fairy tale image of the truth. My life just seemed to keep getting better and made me forget about my pain and the pressure of being a burden to everyone."

"You are not a burden, Levy, you know that." He lectured softly, frowning down at her. "So, what is this fairy tale you found yourself in?"

"Just a simple one of finding a man whose skin is scarred from adventure, befriending him, and allowing myself to believe we will not be separated...hoping he would make me his pura." She sighed, closing her eyes as she recalled the gentle caress of his thumb and his passionate kiss, pain piercing through her chest.

"You will have to explain 'pura' and I am fairly certain that you are referring to the male servant who has run off; is that why you are out here?" He interrogated, cupping her chin and tilting her head to make her look at him.

"We do not have a word for 'pura' – its literal translation does not match the depth of its meaning." She replied bitterly, glaring at him. "And yes, I am out here for _Gajeel_."

"The male servant will not return here, foolish child! I do not care if he was your friend! He has run off and abandoned you! He used you and left you behind!" He snapped, pulling roughly on her arm to force her into a sitting position, scraping her smooth pale skin against the rough grey stone.

"He was not a servant, he was a slave! And he did care about me! I do not care what you say! I love him and you cannot make me stop!" She yelled back, pushing against him with both her hands, the handmade rabbit fur clothes dropping to the cobbles by their feet.

Levy froze as billions of hot, stinging pinpricks covered her cheek. She blinked unseeingly, bringing her hand to her cheek and feeling the warmth there. She blinked again, realising she was holding her breath as she began to register her surroundings, the pain in her cheek throbbing quietly. She watched as her uncle studied something small and brown in his hands. She noticed something made of a similar brown on his lap, a white object resting on it. She blinked, staring at the white object as it became increasingly familiar.

"What are these...? They appear to be made from rabbit fur?" He queried, watching her closely.

"Give them back, they are mine!" She demanded, trying to snatch them back, only to be swatted out of the way. "I said give them back! Gajeel made them for me!"

"The male servant made you...scraps of fur...? Why?" He mused, dangling the top just out of her reach.

"He was not your servant, he was your slave! You held him here-"

"Do you want me to slap you again?!" He roared, raising his hand in threat.

"Slap me as many times as you wish, Uncle, it will not change the truth." She spat, pain searing through her cheek as his hand made contact.

"You are your father's daughter!" He snapped back in disgust. "You place yourself too high and think you can question the decisions of those above you! Will you forsake your family too, brat!?"

"I would never forsake my family!" She yelled back, pushing him again before snatching for the top that Gajeel had made her.

"You have already hurt my daughter!" He retorted, stopping her instantly, reminding her of the guilt she had felt for so long.

"I did not mean to..." She whispered, falling back to sit on her heels. "I would never mean to hurt Lucy...She is my best friend and I consider her to be almost a sister...She thanks me for not marrying because it means she can keep her freedom a little longer...but because I ran off...she feels guilty...and now she is agreeing to marry a man she does not love before she is even ready to marry...But it was not my decision to force her to marry in the first place – it was yours!" She finished, glaring up at him.

"She is doing the right thing, unlike you, you ungrateful brat! You talk of love, but here you are, crying in the middle of the courtyard, waiting for a man who will never come! He does not love you! He is a barbarian!" He exclaimed, throwing the rabbits' fur in her face as if it were proof.

"He is not a barbarian! He is kind and sweet! He is gentle and he has risked his life for me! He has already proved you wrong! He will keep proving you wrong! I know he loves me because he told me so last night!" She stopped, replaying her last words in her head, trying to remember if he had, or if that had just been in her imagination as he had kissed her.

"Did he say it in his language?" He smirked, narrowing his eyes at her.

"Yes...?" She replied reluctantly, wondering what his argument would be.

"Then he could have said anything to you – could have told you that his words meant one thing when they really meant another. If he had really meant it, he would have said it in your language." He sneered, standing up from the side of the fountain.

"No, he said it in his own language...because if he had said it in mine, then his father would not have understood. He wanted his father to understand as much as I did." She replied coldly, glaring up at him.

"His father? The other male was his father?!" Her uncle snapped, holding her stare.

"Why is that important?! You do not care about the idea of 'fathers'! You refuse to tell me about mine and you do not even act as a real father to your own children!" She exclaimed, standing up to face him with her new clothes clenched in her fist.

"How dare you!? I treat you as one of my own and this is how you repay me?! I should have turned your mother away when she came to me for help! I should have ignored her after your father threw everything away for the sake of a pathetic barbarian!" He yelled, glaring back down at her.

"...For a pathetic...barbarian...?" She repeated, staring back at him in confusion, unsure of what he had just told her.

"You may look and sound like your mother, but you are definitely your father's daughter – at least your mother knew when to stop! She helped people as much as she could, but she never stepped out of line! Your damn father threw his life away for some barbarian because he decided our superiors were wrong." He grumbled, glaring angrily across at the stable block. "He was a fool, but he was still my closest friend."

"What happened to my father...?" She asked, keeping her voice soft as she watched him.

"He was a complete fool...but he was a perfect match for your mother. We were actually placed into the same regiment, stationed at the fort in the western Fiorian mountains. He was 'local', but his parents had come from another land. I, on the other hand, was not. We became good friends and he introduced me to your aunt – his younger sister by eight years. She was fifteen, but I adored everything about her...I was twenty-three. Her parents agreed to my proposal and we were married. I do not know if she really had any idea what she was getting herself into, but she had Gray before she was sixteen. I had as much luck keeping my hands off of her then as I do now." He mused, lowering himself back onto the edge of the fountain. "Your mother walked into our wedding by accident. Everything had gone fairly quiet, just a few of us lazing around a table having a drunken heart to heart, and she had assumed everyone had left."

"So it was by chance that my parents met?" She laughed, shaking her head. "Why was she walking into a wedding after it had finished?"

"I am getting to that bit, patience." He frowned, turning his attention to the ripples in the fountain before continuing. "She apologised and your father asked her what she had thought she was doing, just walking in because of an assumption. She became very shy and fidgety, and eventually your aunt invited her to come sit at the table with us, even though she had not answered. Your aunt got her talking, finding out that she worked in the kitchen and that she collected the leftovers to feed those who could not afford to feed themselves. Well, your father, he jumped to his feet instantly, declaring that he would gather every last scrap of leftover food for her."

"But that sounds like a good thing...so why do you always sound so angry when you say I am my father's daughter...? He sounds like a very kind and caring man?" Levy queried, wondering what his point was.

"That is why your aunt was so fond of him and why she trusted him when he told her I was a good man that would take care of her...He entrusted me with his baby sister...I did not expect that he would later entrust me with his wife and child...for the sake of some barbarian that he knew nothing about."


	31. Chapter 31

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima! ^_^**

**Hello everyone! Sorry about the wait! Thanks for all the kind messages! My granny is feeling much better! ^_^ So, thank you to everyone favouriting/following/liking/reading/reblogging/reviewing this! It really means a lot to both of us! And thank you to _MakeItHale_ for BETAing this! ^_^**

* * *

**Chapter Thirty-One**

"You may not remember, but your father did not die in battle." Her uncle sighed, staring into the depths of the cool water. "He gave his life for what he believed in and abandoned his family for a barbarian that he had only just met. Surely you can understand why I would be angry...? It is hard for me to see so much of him in you and harder still to see you behaving in such a way concerning a barbarian."

"Gajeel is not a barbarian, Uncle...I could not feel this way if he were." She murmured, glancing at him as she lowered herself down to join him on the edge of the fountain.

"The name 'Dragon-man' was created ten years ago, but I do not like using it...The name fills men with fear as myths and truths become jumbled. Many say the Dragon-people can make scales appear on their bodies and that they can breathe fire...It is even rumoured that they can transform into dragons. The truth is that they are much larger than the people of Fiore and stronger too. They seem to all be warriors, but I cannot understand why. Of their people, I have only met three males and one of them was your precious Gajeel. The second was the silver-haired male that you said was his father...but the first one...he was a sight to be seen." He mumbled, a distant, thoughtful tone twisting through his voice.

"He was where the name 'Dragon-man' came from...he had scales tattooed over most of his upper body." Levy continued, earning a snort of amusement from her uncle.

"You have been told some of this already! But they did not give him a fitting description!" He exclaimed, smirking at her. "His hair was the shade of cherry blossoms and spiked back – was about the length of Gray's. His arms were covered completely in tattoos of dragon-like scales, as was his neck. The scales overflowed onto his shoulders, making it look like he wore intricate red armour fitted to his skin. The red scales met his hairline, breaching the tanned skin of his forehead as well as invading his cheeks. The rest of his face was covered in the same shaped scales, but they were not filled in with colour. His eyes...I will never forget his eyes as they burned into me. It was as if he could sense that your father and I were close...and he could not understand why I disagreed so strongly with your father."

"I still do not understand the importance of this? Why was my father executed?" Levy urged, trying to picture the unknown man next to the image she had formed of the King of Gajeel's people.

"I have seen his eyes again and I never thought I would. I know it must be a coincidence, but it would not surprise me if they were related in some way." Her uncle laughed quietly as if at some private joke. "He had lizard-like eyes, or dragon-like I guess, like your Gajeel...but his were gold...It was as if they had been forged of the purest gold and gifted to him by the gods...giving him the power to see and understand everything around him. He clearly did not foresee the outcome of his siege though." He sighed, turning to watch her. "He came to the fort, demanding that his 'pura' be returned to him, along with his child. He told us that he knew that they were being held there."

"Were they?" She asked, biting her lip nervously.

"Not as far as we knew, but your father decided to look into his accusations despite the fact we were ordered to ignore him. A few of the men decided he would be worth a lot as a slave, but that did not end well for them. They do not seem to attack unless provoked...Does that agree with what you know?" He asked, studying her as she played with the twine of the necklace.

"Yes...Gajeel would not try to pick a fight, but he would retaliate to a threat or being mocked. His father, according to Gajeel, would not have paid any attention to me if it had not been for him." She explained, running a finger over one of the feathers. "He only attacked me because I could have alerted the guards to the fact that he had broken loose...and he had only threatened me at the place we stayed overnight because Gajeel had broken rules...He had, according to his father, endangered their people by teaching me things."

"Did the three of you stay together?" He inquired, sounding too indifferent for Levy's liking.

"The three of us stayed in one room and our clothes stayed on...Gajeel's father slept in a chair." She returned, watching as his eyes narrowed.

"Where did you and Gajeel sleep?" He challenged, daring her to try to lie to him.

"Perhaps you should continue with telling me about my father?" She suggested, smiling sweetly up at him.

"I will, after you tell me the truth about your night with your precious Gajeel." He replied, the threat evident in his lowered tone.

"We remained clothed, but we lay upon the top of a bed without covers, sharing each others' warmth. We did nothing wrong." She returned, nodding defiantly at him.

"Of course that was wrong! You let that barbarian touch your body! He held you as you slept! If anyone were to find out the truth about your night with him, you would bring shame to our entire family! You would never be able to marry!" He exclaimed, trapped between horror and anger as he stared at her, his eyes impressively wide.

"Well, if I cannot be with Gajeel, we will just have to remain quiet about it." She sighed, remaining neutral as she laughed at him on the inside, wondering what he would say about Gajeel having groped her breasts and kissed her only a few hours earlier. "Can we return to the subject of my father, please?"

"Of course...As I said...your father began to investigate...He discovered that a female had in fact been captured five years previous – she had been heavily pregnant, so had apparently been an 'easy steal'. I do not understand why anyone would abandon a pregnant woman in the mountains, but someone had." He explained quietly, unable to hold her gaze. "It had not been hard to find out what had happened to the female. She died during childbirth, but the child was harder to find out information on. No-one seemed to know if the child had survived – it had been five years and the soldiers had changed. All anyone could say was that they had not heard what had become of the child. Your mother was the first one to take my side...I could not have been more surprised. We both told him to drop his investigation, but he would not as long as the male stood outside the gates."

"What happened to the child? Did he find out?!" Levy asked, becoming increasingly intrigued, forgetting herself and what she had already learned.

"He continued, even after we both pleaded with him, and eventually he earned an official warning. All that did was spur him on – that was apparently all he needed to tell him that the male outside the gate was right, that his child was being held. Your father had already apologised to the male for the loss of the female...The male had been clearly distraught, but he still did not leave, just kept asking for his child to be returned." He frowned, clearly watching the scene in front of him as he stared straight through her. "I still do not understand why he did not give up."

"Because he could not...He was the King of his people and the child was his only child." Levy explained bitterly, thinking of the pain King Igneel of Gajeel's people must have suffered, desperate to regain his child, having to forgo truly grieving for his mate until his child was returned to him.

"He...He was their King...? We executed the King of the Dragon-people?! Levy?!" Her uncle rushed, horror clear in his wide, dark eyes.

"Why did you do it?" She whispered, wishing she had some way she could explain everything to Metalicana, knowing how much pain he and his family had endured these past fifteen years.

"The King's orders...Apparently the child did exist and it was treason for your father to ignore orders to help the barbarian at the gate...I do not know what became of the child, or where it was being held at the time...Your father was executed alongside the barbarian King by order of the King of Fiore. Your mother came to me and pleaded for my help...She and my wife had become close, so I sent her to my family's estate; where you are today. I asked to be transferred and no-one argued. Everyone knew that I had just lost the man I considered my brother by more than marriage." He sighed, staring blankly down at the cobbles.

"That is horrible...He truly is a barbarian...The King of Fiore is a disgusting barbarian!" She exclaimed angrily, standing from the edge of the fountain. "How can you stand to be in his company?!"

"Do not dare talk about the King in such a way! He is a great man and our ruler! You have no right to question him!" He snapped, his hand greeting her cheek once again as he rose to his feet. "Do not ever let me hear you saying such things again!"

"He stole a baby and had its father executed for asking for it to be returned to him! He stole the Prince of Gajeel's people and now he has stolen the crowned Princess of Bosco! He is a disgusting barbarian, set on destroying families and stealing other people's countries!" She spat, earning another, harder, slap.

"Levy, you cannot say such things!" He yelled back, a hint of desperation cutting through his voice as he grabbed both her arms, surprising her.

"He will not live long...His son is supposed to be a good man; I look forward to his coronation and the Princess of Bosco's release." She replied quietly, earning a disbelieving stare from her uncle.

"You know what is wrong with the King...?" He gasped, tightening his grip on her.

"No, but I was told that he would have died before Gajeel and his father reached the border. Is he ill?" She inquired, perfectly indifferent to his current state.

"He is extremely ill and he is getting steadily worse. You will tell me what you know, or you will be at risk of having the Royal Guard come looking for you. They will work out it was the doing of the Dragon-men!" He returned, glaring angrily at her. "You will be executed like your father! Tell me what the fool has done!"

"I do not know." She glared back, standing her ground. "Even if I did, I would not tell you!"

"Levy, please!? The King's Royal Guard may already be on their way here! He has been getting sicker since the night they left and if they realise it is not natural- Levy, they will come straight here for you. If you utter even a word of what you have said to me...they will interrogate you and they will execute you for treason." He pleaded, cupping the side of her face. "Will you let your Gajeel's foolishness be the death of you...?"

Levy stared back at him, letting his words sink in. Gajeel's greatest fear concerning her and his people was about to happen and it was all her fault. She should not have pleaded with him to take her with him. If she had not, he would not have supposedly kidnapped her. The guards would have had no idea that there was a chance she could have learned what Metalicana had done – she would not have even known that the King's illness was not natural. Why had she been so determined?! Why had she still been trapped in her stupid fairy tale world?! Fairy tales are not real! She knew that she could not go with him, but she had kept trying to make him take her with him...What had she done...?

"I do not know what Metalicana did...but I believe he is the reason the King is ill." She stated, staring back into her uncle's pained dark eyes.

"Then we must find them. We need to let the King's Royal Guard think you have just worked it out, rather than you knew anything at all." Her uncle declared, pulling her against him, holding her tight, his voice becoming a whisper. "I cannot lose you...I cannot lose them all over again."


	32. Chapter 32

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima! ^_^**

**Hey! Just a little heads-up! I leave for Ireland on Tuesday, so I'll post next Thursday's chapter this Sunday! It might be a little late or a little early since I have a Christening on Sunday, but it will be posted! ^_^ Thank you to everyone reviewing/reblogging/reading/liking/following/favouriting this! It means a lot! ^_^ Thanks to _MakeItHale_ for BETAing this! You do a marvelous job! ^_^ I hope all of you enjoy this chapter and the next chapter is only a few days away! ^_^**

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**Chapter Thirty-Two**

Levy took a deep breath as she smoothed her dress. She smiled at Captain Loke as he appeared in through the door, bowing his head to her with a small smile. Even he did not seem happy with this arrangement. She could see the concern in his eyes and the way he kept watching her. She pulled a chair out and sat down, studying the makeshift cabin around her. They had arrived here that morning, having been notified that the temporary wooden cabin would be complete, having taken several days to build. It had a simple bed in the corner for her, but she had no plans to sleep in it. She had chosen this place because it was where the forests of Bosco crossed over into Fiore for several miles. It had certainly looked like the most likely path for Gajeel and his father to take – plenty of cover with almost no patrols to worry about.

"Levy? If your theory is correct, they should be passing through in the next couple of hours...You should make sure you are ready." Her uncle called quietly, stepping into the cabin. "Captain Loke's men are in position. Do you really believe he will come quietly if you tell him your life is in danger? You realise that if he does not...it would mean that he cares more for himself...than you...? That he does not truly love you?"

"I know this and I will accept his decision. If he does not agree to come quietly, then I will return here to the cabin where I will be safe and you can decide your men's fate." She replied in perfect indifference, picking up her book.

"I am glad to see that you have listened to me and not worn those...things." He continued, looking over her white dress. "White is the colour of innocence and surrender, so you are not provoking him. I approve. If you had worn the things he had made you, you may have been more likely to encourage him to speak to you, but you would have made the men doubt your intentions."

"I do not care what your men think, Uncle." She sighed, turning her head to look back up at him. "I love Gajeel and I want him to know that. I am here because I have failed him."

"You have not failed him, he has failed you, Levy, remember that. He hurt you, tried to leave you behind and made you hurt Lucy." He returned sternly, holding her gaze. "You should make sure you know what you are going to say and be outside in ten minutes." He finished, slamming the door behind him as he left.

"My delicate mountain flower, you do not need to do this – you will only cause yourself more pain." The Captain soothed, gently laying a hand on her shoulder as he claimed a chair at the table.

"His people are important to him, Captain. He did not want to tell me anything because it would endanger both them and me. What is happening right now...it is his greatest fear since arriving in Fiore coming true. My life may not be a fairy tale, but I can stop my life from taking everything from him." She whispered, searching his eyes. "I love him and I have endangered him and his people...My country have wronged his people, but all they wish to do is create peace. They want to end the war between Fiore and Bosco. They do not choose to fight, but they will defend themselves."

2"How is murdering our King defending themselves, my innocent little mountain flower?" He cooed, coxing her to continue, concern for her shining in his eyes.

"They wish to end the war...Metalicana found out a way to stop it while he was the King's pet...The Prince...He does not want this war either and neither does the Princess...The King is the only one filled with such greed...Metalicana realised that the King's death could end this war and it allowed him to take his revenge for his family and his people...It will allow the release of the Princess of Bosco." She mumbled softly, taking hold of his hand that rested on his knee.

"You say they only retaliate...but murdering the King, even to such an end, is not retaliation...It is killing a man and hoping for your wish to be granted. What if the Prince wages war against the Dragon-people for the death of his father?" Captain Loke questioned quietly, squeezing her shoulder.

"The King of Fiore had the King of Gajeel's people executed - alongside my father! He stole their Prince and tried to hold him captive – now he is doing the same with the Princess of Bosco! He will kill her father the same as he did to Gajeel's uncle. The King would not stop and he could not be reasoned with...Gajeel wished to reason with him, but the King just laughed at him and denied having kidnapped the Princess...He even commented on the notion of her father's passing." She explained, trying to keep the disgusted note out of her voice.

"Answer me one more thing, my intelligent mountain flower?" He requested gently, earning a nod of agreement. "If he has truly stolen the Prince of the Dragon-people, where is he keeping him?"

"Someone helped him escape, but he was a young boy and he had no way to return to his people...He likely has no idea of who he really is." She replied bitterly, glaring at the top of the wooden table.

"My precious mountain flower, please do not do anything rash. Just do as you have promised, please?" He pleaded softly, brushing a blue tendril back behind her ear. "Your cousin would be upset if anything happened to you."

"You are like Gajeel – you give us names." She mused, a small smile gracing her lips. "What do the names you give us mean? I understand his and now the concept intrigues me."

"Lucy is a desert flower, a beautiful maiden from the hotter lands of Fiore, while you are a mountain flower. You come from the cooler climate of the regions surrounding the coastal western Fiorian mountains, like your parents." He explained, smiling back at her in his amusement. "You even resemble the plants of your native regions...It does not surprise me that you caught the attention of Gajeel if the King is correct in his hunch."

She smiled at him and watched as he nodded to her before getting up to take his leave, apparently having said everything he wished to. She sighed, looking at the aged book on the table. It had been her mother's favourite and Levy had loved when her mother had read it to her. She knew every word of it by heart and she knew she wanted to one day tell it to Gajeel. She stood up from the table, moving to take the rabbit fur garments from her bed. She glanced at the book, smiling as a tear rolled down her cheek. She picked it up and wrapped it in the fur skirt, before tying the necklace around her neck. She looked around the cabin, knowing what she had to do. She stepped out of the cabin door.

She looked around her at the giant trees towering far above her head, daylight glittering between their leaves down to the forest floor. She began walking through the cleared path towards her uncle's men in their clearing, the Boscan border behind her. She nodded to one of the soldiers who eyed her warily as she passed them on the edge of the clearing. She took a seat on a two meter wide tree stump in the centre of the clearing, stroking the dark rings mournfully. The soldiers had created this clearing for the sole purpose of her safely conversing with Gajeel in the open while they watched on from the edge of the trees. There truly was no chance of them having any privacy, but they could talk in his language, even if his father did end up understanding them. It had become more than just the language of Gajeel's people; it had become _their_ language.

She sat quietly, aware of the growing disgruntled chatter from the soldiers. She could tell she had been there for quite a while, but she did not dare get her book out of her bundle. If her uncle saw it, he would have stormed into the centre of the clearing and dragged her away. She had agreed to return the fur bundle to Gajeel if he decided to forsake her, but she could not decide if her faith in her decision was well placed. She did not doubt Gajeel, or her feelings for him, but they differed in their opinions. She tensed as a towering mass of tanned muscle materialised at the far side of the clearing.

"Gajeel?" She called out, unsure of how he would react to her presence, especially considering the current scenery and soldiers.

"Vkrepr." He grunted back, nodding his head to her.

"_I came to talk to you...My uncle demanded it, but-_" She began, standing from the tree stump.

"_You should not be here, Vkrepr. My father is furious that you have betrayed us like this...He trusted me and I trusted you. You have broken my trust, Vkrepr_." He glared, his rubies burning with hurt and anger.

"_No, I have not, please...? I need you to listen to me! I came here because I could not risk betraying you! I do not wish to endanger your people! You need to know what I do_!" She returned, stepping towards him.

"_You have endangered my people by coming here – I do not need to listen to you! I cannot understand why you would do this, Vkrepr!? I thought you understood!? I trusted you and you have come here and thrown your betrayal in my face_!" He growled angrily, only serving to make her more determined as she took another step forward.

"_I have not come here to betray you. The King of Fiore died three days ago and the only reason that I stand here, and not in a prison being interrogated, is because I lied to them. I pretended I had no idea what had happened and that I only realised a week ago what your father had done. I would never willingly betray you or anyone you care about. I told them that I could persuade you to come quietly to face your punishment_." She explained, continuing towards him at walking pace, ignoring his threatening growl.

"_Vkrepr, how could you expect that of me?! I made my father agree to not hurting your people as we crossed the border, for your sake, and you come here demanding this of me and throwing your uncle's men in our way_?!" He snarled, thunder erupting from his chest.

"_I do not expect you to hand yourself over. I never did. I always knew that one day you would return home and I let myself hope that you would take me with you_." She replied calmly, ignoring his fury as she continued to approach him.

"_Then why are you here, Vkrepr? You know you cannot come with me...I could not lose you because of my greed_." He returned, frowning at her, his threat replaced with remorse.

"_I could not have made the journey to Magnolia from Crocus, and I could not have made it from Magnolia to here...But here, I am in my element_." She smiled, finally reaching him.

"_Vkrepr_?" He murmured, bringing his hand up to cup her cheek.

"_I am like you_." She replied, laying her hand on top of his as she leaned into it. "_I was also brought to the land of dust from the mountains by the General because of my father_."

"_I do not understand_?" He frowned, watching her with an amusingly puzzled expression

"_We are both from the mountains – me from the mountains of Fiore and you from the mountains of Bosco_." She explained, smiling up into his black slits. "_This is the climate I belong to. I can travel here_."

"_You can finally come with me...but a wall of soldiers lies between us_." He murmured, bringing his forehead down to rest against hers, his eyes filled with both pain and a look she could only hope was love. "_I cannot get you through them safely, Vkrepr...We still cannot be together..._"


	33. Chapter 33

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima!**

**Hey! Not sure if this is early or late by this point! ;P Anyway, here is the promised update! I'm flying off to Ireland early on Tuesday so you won't hear from me again until the Tuesday before Christmas! Thank you so much! You're amazing! ^_^ Please enjoy this chapter and I'll give you Chapter Thirty-Four on Tuesday the 22nd of December! ^_^**

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**Chapter Thirty-Three**

"_You can finally come with me...but a wall of soldiers lies between us_." He murmured, bringing his forehead down to rest against hers, his eyes filled with both pain and a look she could only hope was love. "_I cannot get you through them safely, Vkrepr...We still cannot be together..._"

"_Have you not noticed what is around my neck_?" She mused, reaching up to push a long black strand of hair back behind his ear, smiling as he blushed. "_I wish to be your pura_."

"_And I wish you to be mine, but I will not endanger you by trying to take you through men of your uncle_." He sighed, nuzzling her nose.

"_You do not need to_." She smiled softly, looking back into his perfectly cut rubies, their black slits focused on her large hazel eyes. "_I still need to go change – I must protect my modesty_." She smirked, raising her arm that held the fur bundle against her chest slightly, drawing his attention to it.

"_And how do you plan to change out here?! I will not let the eyes of another male look upon you_!" He snarled, her answering giggle silencing him.

"_I will not change in front of them, Gajeel_." She laughed, shaking her head at him, making her attention snap to the fur pressed against her forehead. "_What are you wearing_?" She asked, pulling back slightly to look up at his forehead.

"_The band that you keep in your hair seemed useful...so I made one for myself...It keeps the bits at the top from falling in front of my face...but the hair that you untangled keeps falling forward at the sides._" He frowned, releasing her face to fold his arms across his chest, sulking. "_Now what were you saying about me not having to get you through the men of your uncle? How does it mean you would not be changing in front of these...these...these disgusting males_!?" He finished, glaring murderously across the clearing.

"_Because, I can just walk through. In fact, there is even a place where I can go change behind a locked door – it was built especially. I only brought the clothes with me because I did not trust them to be safe if I left them alone in the cabin_." She smiled happily up at him, clutching her little bundle to her chest.

"_If you go to the cabin and your uncle realises what is going on...He could use you against me, Vkrepr..._" He scowled, watching as the soldiers began to make sounds behind her. "_This is not a good plan...You should not have come here, Vkrepr...You should return home to your own people_."

"_We can finally be together and you try to send me home? I want to be with you, but you will not take me with you, even though you now can_?" She began, anger beginning to rise in her. "Do you really love me...?"

"_What is_ 'love'? _You never explained...Vkrepr_?" He grunted, unsure of the pain and anger he could sense from her.

"_It is what I feel for you and thought you felt for me. It is what drives me to want to come with you, to be with you, to be your pura_." She exclaimed, fighting her bitter tears of anger.

"_I did not know you had a word for that..._" He murmured, cupping her face again, running his thumb gently over her bottom lip, a look of wonder staring down at her. "_I do not see how I can protect you...How can we finally be together_?"

"_I will walk through the wall of soldiers. I will speak to my uncle and head to the cabin. You and your father will follow, but you will have to fight...I cannot change that...But once I have changed, I will leave the cabin before my uncle even has a chance to work out what is really happening_." She explained, looking back into his mesmerising eyes.

"_Where will you go_?" He asked, still sounding unsure as he searched her eyes for the truth.

"_I will hide in the forest. You are a hunter, are you not? You know these forests better than any of the men of my uncle – I know you will be able to find me_." She grinned, watching a smirk flicker through his eyes before his face became completely unreadable as he released her. "_I trust you_."

"_Vkrepr_." He murmured, love flashing through his eyes before he parted his lips to release a terrifying snarl. "_Go! Now! I will not surrender to such fools!_"

Levy turned her back on him, knowing he stood behind her with his powerful arms folded across his chest. She could hear the murmurs of the soldiers as she began walking back across the clearing towards them. She clutched the bundle tighter to her chest, feeling her uncle's questioning gaze following her. Was he going to believe her? She heard a gasp escape one of the soldiers near her as she came within a few meters of them, resisting the urge to smile as she realised the impressive sight of Gajeel's father had caused that. Gajeel was intimidating on his own, but for a male so much larger than him to appear by his side? She could _feel_ the terror radiating from the men in front of her. She walked up to her uncle.

"Well, what did he say?" He demanded, glaring past her towards the two large males standing on the far side of the clearing.

"He said he will no longer be your slave." She stated, pretending to refuse to cry.

"Then he will not give his life for yours?" He grunted, glancing down at her as she nodded. "Then why do you still have those...things?"

"He would not take them back. Apparently asking him to was the greatest insult I could have given." She replied, sounding almost unbelievably bitter.

"So he does not love you after all?" He mused, watching her.

"He did not even know the meaning of the word 'love'. He has tried to turn me away again. I have told him that he will have to fight to get past your men." She finished, glaring angrily at the ground.

"I am sorry, Levy, but now you see him for what he is...I will give you all the time you need...Loke warned me to stop you from doing this, but I could not see a way around it...I truly am sorry...You will find someone to love you one day, just like your father did. You are passionate and caring; all you need is someone who can recognise and understand that." He soothed, cupping her face gently to make her look at him. "Return to the cabin and wait for me there...I will take you home as soon as I have restrained these two, I promise."

Levy nodded as he kissed the top of her head before turning to order his troop to march on the barbarians. Levy quietly slipped away into the trees, quickly making her way to the cabin and locking the door behind her as she kicked her sandals off. She could hear the shouts through the thick wood of the walls as she slid her dress down over her shoulders. She slipped her underwear down her legs, biting her lip as she stood naked in the middle of the cabin. She took a deep breath and unfolded her bundle of rabbit fur. She lifted her book out the middle, clutching it to her bare chest before laying it down next to her. She reached for the skirt, flinching as a man's scream echoed throughout the forest.

She took a deep breath as she picked up the skirt, holding it at knee level to step into it. She slid it up her pale skin, bringing it up to her hips. She laughed quietly to herself as she remembered Gajeel saying she had good hips. She pulled on it, forcing it over her bottom and the top of her hips. She released it to find it falling slightly, resting on her hips like it had on Gajeel's. How often must he have stared at her to have gotten this to fit so perfectly? Her face flushed as she remembered him mentioning that he had snuck into her room to watch her sleeping...Had he used her actually body to fit it?! No...He would not have done that, not even if he _had_ wanted to take her as his pura.

She shook her head and reached for the top, biting her lip as she remembered Gajeel trying to explain what it was for before holding it against her chest to show her how she was supposed to wear it. She wrapped the bottom two strips of rabbit fur around her chest, making sure that bottom of the triangles lay just under her small breasts. She began tying the strips together as she thought about Gajeel trying to give his opinion on her breasts without offending her, finally deciding on saying they were perfectly sized, being practical. She could not wait to find out what his mother was like to have brought up such an awkward, stubborn and completely adorable young man. She tied the top two strips of rabbit fur behind her neck, fascinated by the fact that he had made the top the right size – he definitely had reason to be proud of all his handiwork. She stroked the cover of her mother's book fondly before picking it up and quickly making her way out the cabin door, heading out into the noise of the ongoing fight echoing through the forest.

She began running, keeping the sound of the fight behind her. She kept going, listening for sounds of being followed, listening for the sound of fighting to fade. She stumbled into a natural clearing, panicking as she looked around her, no idea which way to go. She ran around the outside, trying to keep just inside of the trees, hoping that it would make her direction less obvious. She continued to run blindly through the trees, slowly becoming aware of the silence around her. Surely that was not a good thing? She should not be able to hear the fighting at this distance, but surely there should at least be bird song this far away? She slowed to a walk and glanced around her.

She looked up at the canopy, wondering what she should do. She smiled as an idea caught her, dragging her to a tree that had a branch that should be reachable if she jumped. She studied the branch, trying to decide if it would hold her. She felt the silence become heavier, snapping her into action. She tucked her book into the top of her skirt and leapt up at the branch, grinning as her fingers managed to grasp hold of it. The branch easily held her weight as she swung there. She began to try to haul herself onto the branch, feeling her arms strain. She bit her lip and grimaced as she managed to hook an arm over the top of the branch, trying to lift herself up. She swung a leg up, her heel scuffing off of the branch as it hooked over.

She took a deep breath and tried to launch the rest of herself up, successfully dragging herself onto the branch. She sighed and grinned as she sat feeling pleased with herself. She glanced down at her book, biting her lip with remorse as she looked at the fresh brown scrapes across the top half of its front cover. She tensed, a chill running down her spine. She crawled along the branch towards the trunk; she wondered how the thought of it not holding her had even crossed her mind. She reached the trunk and looked up, an opening catching her eye just a few branches above the one she was on. She easily pulled herself up, almost able to step between the branches. She looked into the opening and smirked, for once thankful of her small size. She lowered herself down into the tree trunk, hoping she would be able to pull herself back up out of the hole, finding the opening now sat a few inches above her head.

A shiver crawled over her and she held her breath, unsure of what was making her so tense. Are there any large predators out here? There probably is, but why would it want to come after her? She noticed a small circle of light shining on her shoulder, making her wonder if she was sane as the thought of looking out of it popped into her head. She had just abandoned her family and everything she knew to go live with a man she had once assumed to be a barbarian. In fact, she apparently had so much faith in him that she had run off into the middle of a forest without even checking to see if he was winning the fight against her uncle's men. If he did not, she would be lost out here forever. She certainly would not call herself sane at that very moment.


	34. Chapter 34

**AN: Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima! ^_^**

**A huge thank to everyone who has made it this far and made this story possible! Hope you enjoy this chapter and (if you're not following the advent calendar) I hope to see you in the New Year! Hope you have a great Christmas! And remember, if there's a translation you need for this, check out ****Rovr u nerrna viparketh et rka nuthouha ik Gajiru!******

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**Chapter Thirty-Four**

A shiver crawled over her and she held her breath, unsure of what was making her so tense. Are there any large predators out here? There probably is, but why would it want to come after her? She noticed a small circle of light shining on her shoulder, making her wonder if she was sane as the thought of looking out of it popped into her head. She had just abandoned her family and everything she knew to go live with a man she had once assumed to be a barbarian. In fact, she apparently had so much faith in him that she had run off into the middle of a forest without even checking to see if he was winning the fight against her uncle's men. If he did not, she would be lost out here forever.

She turned slightly and bent her knees, lowering herself just enough for the peephole to be at eye level. She looked out into the forest, watching for any signs of movement. It lay before her eerily still, the silence echoing in her ears. She gulped, suddenly feeling trapped. She glanced back up at the opening, green light from the canopy above still coming in undisturbed. Was whatever had taken an interest in her aware that she was in here? The hollow became darker. She closed her eyes, not daring to move. She waited for the silence to pass, knowing it would not. She cracked her eyes open and squeaked, earning a nose of amusement from the staring ruby eye on the other side of the peephole.

"_Good hiding place, Vkrepr_." A voice called through the walls of the hollow.

"_Gajeel! You scared me! Why did you do that_?!" She exclaimed angrily, glaring back at him.

"_I was sure it was your tracks I was following, but I had to make sure that it was you hiding in the tree. You are impressively small, Vkrepr_." He teased, knocking on the outside of the tree. "_Can you get back out, or am I going to have to climb the tree?_"

"Give me a minute." She grumbled, straightening up and looking up at the opening, hearing his little laugh at her response.

She raised her arms and took a deep breath, readying herself for what she was about to do...again. She gripped onto the edge of the opening, hauling herself upwards with all her might. She shuffled her arms along the branch outside the opening, her stomach resting on the lip. She could feel Gajeel's gaze on her, making her cheeks burn in embarrassment. She could not even pull herself out of a hole in a tree and he could get himself over a wall bigger than him and still seem weirdly graceful. How could she expect him to take her home to his mother? He was probably mortified right now, just watching her make a fool of herself. She reached a hand back to her waist, pulling the book free and laying it onto the branch in front of her.

"Vkrepr?" Gajeel's voice called from the ground.

"_I know, I am an embarrassment..._" She groaned, burying her head into her arms as she lay there, her legs still dangling in the hollow of the tree.

"_Embarrassment...? I do not understand? I was just going to suggest that you threw down the thing you have just put onto the branch..._?" He replied and she could hear the confused frown in his voice.

"_Thank you..._" She called back sheepishly, not looking at him as she picked up the book and dropped it over the side of the branch, knowing he would catch it.

She took another deep breath and hauled herself forward. She was surprised at the difference of not having the book tucked into her skirt. She brought her legs out onto the branch with relative ease, pride swelling in her chest. She moved so that she was sitting on the branch and swung her legs over the side. She grinned down at the male below her as he stood staring up at her, holding her book in one hand. She tilted her head, studying him, wondering what the expression on his face was. She waved down at him, beginning to laugh as he waved back as if he were trapped in a daze.

"_Are you okay down there_?" She inquired, swinging her legs as if she were a child.

"_Amazing..._" He gasped, still staring back up at her, before suddenly shaking his head, looking away from her. "_You did very well getting out of there so easily...and getting up there in the first place...being so small...and having this thing against your waist_." He finished, still not looking back at her as he raised the book.

"_Thank you..._" She mumbled, blushing slightly. "_I thought I had done terribly and that you would be embarrassed of me..._"

"_Our females would have had the strength and size to get up there easily...but they would not have fit inside the tree...for your small size...I could not be more impressed by you_." He replied, finally looking back at her, a pink line visible across the top of his nose, travelling across his cheeks to almost reach his ears. "_I shall help you down...I do not want you to fall and hurt yourself...not after we have come so far..._"

"_Think you can catch me_?" Levy challenged, smirking down at him, eliciting an impressive grin that would have terrified any other living being.

"_You trust me, do you not_?" He returned, an almost musical note to his deep voice.

"_Of course, Gajeel – you have caught me before! In fact, you have already caught me four times_." She smirked, watching a confused frown form across his handsome, studded face.

"_Three_." He corrected, watching her.

"_Four. I would not be here if you had not. You caught me in the bookstore and then when I fell out of the bathroom window. You caught me when I dropped myself out of my bedroom window_." She replied, smiling happily down at him. "_And you have caught my heart_."

"_Then let me catch you a fifth_." He returned seriously, reaching his arm up to her.

She slipped herself off of the edge of the branch, falling feet-first towards the ground below. His arm wrapped effortlessly around her waist, clutching her against him, her bare stomach against his exposed chest. She stared, breathless, into his beautiful, mesmerising rubies as he looked back at her. He glanced down at her lips, before returning his gaze to her hazel eyes. She brought her hands to his cheeks delicately, rubbing his cheekbones caressingly with her thumbs. She lowered her head, resting her forehead against his, not looking away from his eyes. She slowly closed the gap between their lips, kissing him gently, feeling her body being lowered down his in an impossibly slow motion. She felt her toes reach the grass before she realised her head was now leaning back instead of forward.

"_You found her then_?" Metalicana grunted, startling them both, breaking them apart in their flustered attempt to seem as if they had not been doing anything. "_Her apparel suggests that you have already taken her as a mate, but that reaction tells me otherwise_."

"_Father, this is Levy. I know I have not earned all my studs yet, but I wish to choose her to be my pura_." Gajeel stated, turning to face Metalicana boldly.

"_I know that, you fool of a boy_!" He growled, shaking his head. "_You will need to earn your final stud, just as all the other males of the Ragkiz family before you...but I will not disagree with your choice once you have. She has shown true strength and determination to have made it this far. She has used her intelligence to work her way around every obstacle put in her path. I am very impressed_."

"_Thank you, Father_." Gajeel grinned, turning back to her and kissing her again.

"_She may not be of much use as a female of our family, but I can think of a few uses for her...At least she looks like she may actually be capable of bearing your children – I do need a strong _hrutgvit." He grumbled, running his eyes over her.

"_Father_!" Gajeel snapped, his face crimson as he broke away from Levy to stare in utter disbelief at his father.

"Gajeel...what is a...a 'whrut-give-it'?" She asked nervously, looking up at Gajeel's flushed face.

"Hrut-g-vit." He repeated, smiling awkwardly at her, but still refusing to meet her eyes. "It is not something we have really...specifically...talked about...We...We sort of...have...but...we did not directly discuss it...He is talking about the result of...of pureth..."

"_Are you saying the two of you wish to be together, in every way, but the thought of the meaning of such a thing never occurred to either of you_?!" Metalicana exclaimed, shaking his head at them in despair.

"_It has...to me and I believe...to Vkrepr too, but we have not discussed it...exactly._" Gajeel defended, or at least, tried to.

"_You are talking about Gajeel and me mating...and having children...? Did you just say...you need a strong...'_grandson_'...as in, you need Gajeel to have a good strong male heir_?" She offered, feeling her cheeks begin to heat again.

"_You were right when you told me she was a quick learner...Her pronunciation is not perfect, but after living with us for a few years, she should get it. Our descendants will be impressive with her in their ancestry – she will be able to teach them things others cannot. She may even be able to help you converse with your Princess_." He nodded, a small smile at the corner of his mouth.

"_Vkrepr...in case you misunderstood, Juvia is just a friend...She has never been more and it will always be you that I choose as my pura_." Gajeel added sternly, cupping her face in one hand. "E nixa oio, Vkrepr."

"_What is '_nixa_'_?" She mumbled, moving onto her toes to rest her forehead against his.

"_It is our word for '_love_'_..." He whispered, nuzzling his nose against hers.

"E nixa oio rii, egeir." She replied softly, catching his lips briefly.

"_I am only an idiot for you_." He mused, kissing her again.

"_We should get moving or we will never find a good camping spot by nightfall_." Metalicana grumbled, rolling his eyes at them.

Gajeel stole another kiss, nipping her lip lightly, before breaking away with a grin as Levy puffed her cheeks out, glaring up at him. Levy grinned as a large tanned hand made contact with the back of Gajeel's head, catching him by surprise and making Levy laugh as a string of grumbled words she had not heard before escaped him. He aimed a murderous glare at his father's back as the older male started to move on ahead of them, carefully picking out a path through the undergrowth. Gajeel began to follow, clearly not happy about having just been told off. Levy moved to go after her grumpy future pura, yelping as she took a step, Gajeel's head snapping around to look at her in obvious concern.

"Sorry...I...I was running...running through the forest and I was not watching where I was putting my feet...I must have stood on something..." She mumbled, looking away from his gaze.

"Your feet are stirr too soft, Vkrepr...I wirr carry you." He sighed, shaking his head.

"No, it is fine! I can walk, really!" She exclaimed, trying to take another step, failing to hide her pain from Gajeel as he glared at her.

"I wirr carry you. Your feet are stirr too soft – arr you wirr do if you try to wark is make it worse. If you make it worse, it wirr be ronger before you can wark again." He growled, earning a sigh of resignation from her. "You wirr need to carry your thing though." He added, lifting up the book. "What is it?"

"It irz ah boork, Gajeel." Metalicana answered, a note of sarcasm to his voice.

"I know that!" He snapped back, glaring at his father.

"_It is a book about a woman who travels to a land of dragons and falls in love with one, even though they know that it is more than just forbidden. They have to fight to prove themselves, although I will not spoil the end of it...I hoped to read it to you_." She replied sheepishly, taking the book from his hands.

"_A woman who falls in love with a dragon..._" Gajeel echoed thoughtfully, crouching to allow her to climb onto his back.

"_Very appropriate_." Metalicana nodded, watching as Gajeel stood back up with Levy gripping onto him. "_I would like very much to hear the story too, if that is not too much to ask_?"

"_I would be honoured, thank you_!" She grinned over Gajeel's shoulder, happy that the head of Gajeel's family, his father, wanted to spend some of his time listening to her read one of her books.

"Your arre wercome, girrl."

"Too many 'r's, Kurkar."

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**Ri da kitretoag...**


	35. Announcement!

_**Hey! As requested, I'm leaving a little note here to let everyone know that the sequel "Mountains to Dust: Becoming Purav" has started! **_


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